sitegbingles

Resultado SQL

Máquina: localhost
Base de Dados: gb002_enweb
Data de Criação: 12-Ago-2008 às 11:33
Gerado por: phpMyAdmin 2.11.6 / MySQL 4.1.22-standard
Comando SQL: SELECT * FROM `xoops_xfs_article` LIMIT 0, 100 ; 
Registos: 34

articleid categoryid uid title maintext counter created changed nohtml nosmiley summary url page groupid submit published expired notifypub type ishtml htmlpage rating votes hits urlname offline weight noshowart nobr enaamp 221FREEDOM WITH RESPONSABILITYThe Benjamin Generation Conference took place this year on November 29 - December 01 and officially marked the birth of a Movement, birthed in the hearts of people who were “desperate” to see this Generation with an identity, an identity coming from the Father, with a purpose and real reason for living, with them, in the end, understanding just how precious they are to God and how much He believes in them.

The youth were hearing some key phrases during these days, coming from the mouths of the leaders who were present at the Conference.  One of the other leaders told me that to see the pouring out of the passion and power was just awesome.  He has been raised in the church and it was wonderful to see the freedom with which the children, adolescents, adults and older people were worshiping and just pouring themselves out in the presence of the Lord.  He realized that he had some internal barriers in his own life, in regards to what God was doing, the craziness, that were preventing him from entering in with the rest of them, that needed to come down. I was really touched to see that great leader get down on his face and worship God for what He was doing.  Another person, also a well known leader in the city said that to see the people howling “like wolves who devour the prey” made him feel old, but it wasn’t long before you could see him happy and joining in with the rest of the people and coming before the table that the Lord had prepared for those days.

These, simply, were three extraordinary days, marked with and full of joy, freedom, power and passion… remarkable things that only happened as a result of the leadership of the Holy Spirit during the birth of the Benjamin Generation.  The thing that I heard the most from people who were there is that they were forever marked, changed, by the discovery of their identity, not because it’s a new identity, or something new, or a fad, or a passing thing, but because it is the response to a desperate cry in their hearts: “I am the child of my Father’s right hand… I am a Benjamite!”

Freedom is one of the main characteristics of those that have really had an encounter with God and this is what is happening to those that have found their identity in the middle of this Movement.  They have a new found freedom. Now, something extremely important needs to be emphasized to each of us that have received this: all of this freedom that we have found through the Spirit of God needs to also be marked and followed by a personal responsibility to walk in holiness. Without this, our freedom will be empty, irresponsible and unfruitful. On the other hand, I believe that the only true freedom in the Spirit is that which also walks with responsibility.  We of the GB Team want and need to say something to you my friend: You can count on us! We believe in you!  It doesn’t matter what you do… we will continue believing in you and nothing less than this.  You are a blessing, a courageous warrior of God, a live witness, the protected of the Father, the one who received a portion five times larger from Jesus, your older brother.  For this, don’t stop, but go forward Benjamin and devour all of the enemies of God with liberty and responsibility in the Lord.

Pr. Eduardo Nascimento
GB Team
Santarém-PA/Brazil
(12/02/2001)2801086810053108681005300  11 2 31100730034000admin0 0.000000 00000321CAN YOU HEAR THE CRY?There is a cry going out into the world. Can you hear it? The Bible says that he who has ears let him hear what the Spirit is saying. This cry is distinct and is only heard with the heart of those who have the same cry.  It has been prophesied that there is coming a worldwide youth revival, where the Spirit of God will release a “passion” for the presence of the Lord.  This awakening will sweep across the earth, like a wild fire, and nothing will be able to stop, nor stand in the way. My friend, rejoice because these are exciting times.

The dictionary says that a passionate cry implies an emotion that stirs one to the depths of their soul.  An emotion that burns with a glow. Isaiah 40:3 says “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. There was once a man who came crying in the wilderness.  This man was a wild looking guy with a radical message.  Many people thought of him as a crazy guy with a few screws missing.  You know John the Baptist could not control what was said about him but he did have two things burning in his heart.  One was to obey and fulfill the call of the Lord on his life and the second was a burning passion to see the Lord.  We know that the Bible is clear about the Lord calling us out for His good pleasure but it is this second point that I would like to expand a little more. 

This generation will be known because it has been with Jesus.  Just like the world and the religious ones during the times of Jesus and the apostles so is it with this generation. Look at the response of the world when they looked at Peter and John in Acts 4:13  “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.  This passion for Jesus will cause a boldness like never before.  The Word will be preached with great boldness convicting the multitudes of their sins.  This will be none other than the anointing of the Lord breaking the yokes off this generation.  The world will marvel and acknowledge that we have been with the Lord Jesus himself. This passion to be with Jesus will be the overwhelming factor that will cause an overflow of His life and love to others. They thought that they could get rid of Him but they were mistaken. They just needed to read the scriptures to know that He would rise on the third day.  That He would return and empower His church with His Spirit. When you spend time with Jesus you will get more of Him.  His passion is to live in you and through you His life so that He can touch this generation. Christ in us the hope of glory. This is the difference that is touching this lost and dying world. When the world looks at you what do they see? I guarantee you that the more time you spend with Jesus the more of Him you shall have.

Can you hear the cry? It is a passionate cry for more of His presence. Benjamin Generation is all about Jesus. He birthed this movement so that He could make contact with this generation and vice versa. Jesus has sent us His Spirit to help us fulfill the call of God on our lives and to see this generation walk in His presence and power. The Spirit came with a cry and that is “Abba Father”. This is our cry. Will you open up your heart today and receive the cry of the Spirit…

Mike Tossas
GB Team
Santarem-PA/Brazil
(12/08/2001)2531086810209108681038800  11 2 31100781892000admin0 0.000000 00000421THE REAL REASONWhy am I here? What's my purpose on earth? Who am I? 

These are all questions we have to answer in our lives. Many of us spend our whole life looking ,trying to answer these questions,and never really find the answer. The answer is all tied up in Christmas.  

2000 years ago Christ Jesus was born, we celebrate this birth every year, and many of us don't even know why. We may think its the last party before the New Year, or just a time to give and get presents, the world has traditionally celebrated. The real reason was prophesied hundreds of years before by many prophets and men of God. The Messiah, the Lamb of God that would take away the sins of the world was born, lived 33 years without sin, was crucified on a cross carrying our sins upon Him,died paying the price for our sins, and was buried for 3 days, then arose from the dead and ascended to heaven. He now sits at the right hand of Father God in all power and authority. Christ Jesus fully and completely paid our debt for sin. This is the reason for celebration. 

The sin of Adam and Eve separated us from God. Since then we are all born sinners, separated from God. God created us all to be with Him ,sons and daughters in intimate relationship with Him . He loves us with unfailing love. That's why He sent Jesus to pay the price for our sins and bring us back into fellowship with the Father. 

The Bible says in John 3:16-18, For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son,so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.God did not send Son into the world to condemn it,but to save it. There is no judgement awaiting those who trust him.But those who do not trust him have already been judged for not believing in the only Son of God. 

The Bible also says in the book of Ephesians 2: 8-10, God saved you by his special favor (grace) when you believed (faith). And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus,so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. 

You are here to be part of God's family. Believe in what Jesus did for you and ask Him to forgive your sins and be Lord in your life.He died so you could live. 

Your purpose here is to love God and live for Him every day serving Him . For in him we live ,and move and exist (Acts 17:28a). 

If you are Christ's ; you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood , God's holy nation,his very own possession. This is so you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. 1 Peter 2:9 

If you are not Christ's you can be. He is calling YOU out of the darkness into His wonderful light.God's plan is to redeem us fill us with his power and glory to tell others of His great love for them. 

You are loved, you are precious to God, and you have a purpose. Lets fulfill it together in Christ Jesus. 

This is why we celebrate CHRISTMAS. aaaauuuuuuuuh!!!


Ed Fuller
GB Team
Santarém-PA/Brazil
(12/20/2001)2401086810342108681034200  11 2 31100885584000admin0 0.000000 000005212002 - The Year of the Wolf“There is coming a world-wide youth revival, the Spirit of God will release such ‘passion’ for the presence of the Lord.  This coming awakening will sweep across the earth, like a wild fire, nothing will be able to stop, nor stand in the way.  These youth will be filled with resolve and vision of the harvest; they will   be bound together with cords of love and faith that cannot be broken…These youth will began to come together this year (2000) and by the year 2002 they will be on the move. Their message will be the words of Micah 3:8 ‘But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin.’” (Prophecy - THE COMING WORLD-WIDE YOUTH REVIVAL - By Bobby Conner 12-2-99)

With the start of the year 2002 right around the corner, I find it hard to hide my emotions.  I am very excited to see what God is going to do this year through His Benjamin.  The prophecies are pointing to year 2002 to be the year that the youth are going to rise up and the world is going to hear their cries, their howl.  “I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD!”  This movement is not “coming,” but has already arrived.  This move of God has already started.  You can’t see the wind, but you can see its effects.  And you can’t see the Holy Spirit, but you can see His effects.  The results of this new move are already obvious and nothing can nor will stand in the way of what God is wanting to do.  God is moving and is raising up this generation to be His mouth piece to declare the acceptable year of the Lord and to denounce the sins of the world.

It is clear that God is going to use your life this year, Benjamin.  But, I want to encourage and challenge you to spend more time in the presence of the Lord.  This is the key and secret to be used of God and to see His power operating in your life.  You have to be always connected to Him.  If you unplug your television from the wall, it won’t work.  It’s the same thing with the children of God; if they unplug themselves from God, they won’t work.  We need to always be in the presence of God.  We have a great privilege and opportunity to know our God, and we will.  Seek His face, listen to His voice and obey His commands. Put your hand to the plow and don’t look back. This is your year, Benjamin. The Year of the Wolf.

"Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he devours the prey, in the evening he divides the plunder." (Genesis 49:27 – NIV)




Pr. Jeff Fromholz
GB Team
Santarem-PA/Brazil 
(12/31/2001)2681086810507108681050700  11 2 31100980642000admin0 0.000000 00000621PR. JEFF TALKS ABOUT SEX<img border="0" src="/images/princ7e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

Without sleeping, he spent the whole night contemplating what to do; if he had the courage to do it; if he really wanted to or not.  But it was hard to think with all of those voices in his head.  “You’re still a virgin?” they’d ask him with a note of surprise and mockery in their voices.  “You don’t know what you’re missing,” they’d tell him.  “Really?  Is what I’m missing really that great?” he thought.  On the other hand, he remembered the voice of his mother telling him, “My son, wait for your wife.  This was God’s intention for sex and that is what He wants.”   And still, above all else, there was his girlfriend.  He really liked her, maybe it was even love.  Isn’t it O.K. to do it with someone you really love?  Isn’t love enough?  Besides, she had been telling him about how much she loved him.  She said, “I love you. I want to give you all of me.”  He didn’t know what to think.  He wanted all of his buddies to think that he was just like them and that he too had had sex with a girl.  He also wanted to please his girlfriend.  He didn’t want her to think that he didn’t desire or love her.  But still, he couldn’t forget the words of his mother.  What was he going to do?  What should he do? 

He got up the next day, having not slept at all, and went to work. He worked as hard as he possibly could, but he was distracted.  He was thinking about the night that he planned for with his girlfriend.  Her parents were traveling, so they would have the house all to themselves.  He opened up with one of his friends at work and told him what he was going through and received a less than comforting reaction as his friend fell to the ground laughing.  His fear was real, yet no one seemed to understand.  But, at least his friend had a solution…and experience.  After work, they went and bought some beer, his friend’s solution.  After the seventh or eighth beer, he wasn’t feeling nervous anymore. As a matter of fact, he wasn’t feeling much of anything.  So, like that, he went to his girlfriend’s house. And against his better judgment and conscience, he gave himself to her.  

That night, after they’d had sex, he couldn’t seem to find a way to get to sleep. His thoughts tormented him and his conscience was weighing down on him.  He finally got up and went into the bathroom and cried.  He knew what he had done was wrong and he knew that what he had lost, he could never get back.  After two weeks, he and his girlfriend had basically quit talking; the guilt and the shame were too much to bear.  Finally they just ended up arguing and fighting and decided to end the relationship.  Where did the love that they’d had gone?  What happened?

I know this story, because I was that boy.  One of the things that I most regret in my life is the fact that I didn’t wait for my wife to be my first sexual experience.  If I could only have that back.  I understand what you as young people are going through, because I too went through the same things.  But, unfortunately, I didn’t know Jesus and I messed up.  I also know that a lot of you, like me, have messed up in his area and that you are living with a lot of guilt and shame.  You don’t have to live with that and you can walk in victory in this area.

The Bible in 1John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he (God) is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”   God wants to forgive you for the things that you have done and cleanse you.  But you have to take the first step and confess your sins to Him and repent.  He will restore you.

The Bible also says in 1Corinthians 10:13, “But remember that the temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it.”  God has made it such that you don’t have to give into temptations, you don’t have to fall into sin.  He makes sure that you are not tempted beyond what you can handle and He even goes so far as to give you strength to resist the temptations.   This is your God and this is how you are able to say  “no” to those that want you to do things that you shouldn’t do before your wedding day, and then only with your wife or husband.

God is raising up a new generation; a pure generation; a generation that says “no” to the devil; a generation that is victorious over the temptations of this world.  This generation is going to walk with the Lord in repentance and purity.  If you have already fallen in this area and have lost your purity, ask God’s forgiveness and commit yourself to, from this day forward, live a life of purity dedicated to the Lord.  If you still are pure, you deserve to be congratulated.  Continue waiting for the day of your wedding and your spouse.  You will never be sorry that you waited.  The Benjamin Generation is a pure generation.  Walk in purity and the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA/Brazil 
(02/20/2002)4301086810593108714405600  11 2 31101423454000admin0 0.000000 00000721MORE SEX: KISSINGThe response for the last e-pistle was incredible.  Many of you expressed that you felt that it was incomplete.  We heard you.  So, here we go with “More Sex.”

“Hey!  I really like your lipstick, what flavor is it?”

KISSING before marriage.  Sin or not a sin?  That is the question.

Could something so seemingly innocent as a little kiss on the lips be a sin in God’s eyes?  We’re not talking about the overdone, exaggerated, Hollywood version of kissing, we’re talking about a little “Hey, I like you” kiss.  So, is it a sin?

First question:  Is kissing a sexual act, yes or no?  For those of you who think “no,” you are unfortunately wrong.  Almost all incidents of teen sex start with… a little kiss.  Most teen pregnancies started with…a little kiss.  Most venereal diseases are passed as the result of a sexual act that starts with...a little kiss.  Most cases of date rape started with…a little kiss.  So, it appears that the spark, in many cases, that starts the fire is quite simply kissing.  Kissing most certainly is a sexual act.  What teen kissing another on the lips does not feel something strange inside, something sensual, something called hormones?  I know that when I kiss my wife, “WOW!”  It is obvious, like it or not, that kissing is a sexual act.  Kissing is also dangerous, especially for the Christian teen.  Most Christian teens have no intention of having sex before getting married.  So then, why are there so many teen pregnancies in the church?  And how did it happen?  My guess is that it all started with an “innocent” little kiss that led to another “innocent” little kiss that led to an embrace that led to…pregnancy.

Second question:  For whom did God create sexual acts?  God created all sexual acts for and only for married couples.  Sex, and all included acts, like kissing, is something that God created to take place in the intimacy of a marriage.

Third question:  All sexual acts outside of marriage are _____.   (Fill in the blank) The answer is “SIN.” Any sexual act outside of marriage is sin in God’s eyes.  So, we come back to our initial question, “Is kissing before marriage a sin?”  The answer is “Yes.”  Kissing before marriage is a sin.  Kissing, like the act of sex, is not something that God created to take place outside of the marriage.  All sexual acts outside of the marriage covenant are sin and are under a curse.

God is calling this generation to separate itself and be holy.  God is calling you, Benjamite, to be pure.  Here are some verses to help you out:

1 Timothy 4:12;  Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.
(God is calling you to be an example in purity.  God is calling you to be radical.  God is calling you to say “no” while the rest of the world is saying “yes.”)

1 Timothy 5:1-2;  Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.
(Hey guys!  I doubt that most of you would even consider making out with your sister.  Gross!  So, consider this, you are supposed to treat the girls like you would your own sister “with absolute purity.”  That doesn’t leave any room for kissing.)

2 Timothy 2:22;  Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

1 Corinthians 6:18;  Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.
(If necessary, FLEE!  Just like Joseph in Genesis 39, that dude ran.  It is better to flee now that regret later.)

Many pregnant teenage girls and young mothers have played out the scenario time and time again; what they would do different if they had it to do all over again.  “If only I had never allowed that first kiss.”  When children play with matches, they never think of the possibility of burning down their house.  It just doesn’t seem probable.  But, it only takes one match to burn a house down.  You don’t have to come in with a flamethrower to do the job.  And for this very reason, parents teach their kids not to play with matches.  “Playing with matches is dangerous.”  Kissing is just like matches.  It doesn’t seem very probable that someone will end up getting pregnant or raped because of kissing, but it happens.  It only takes one kiss to start those flames of passion burning.  And for this very reason, God instructs us to “flee the evil desires of youth” and to “flee from sexual immorality” (any sexual act outside of marriage, like kissing).  God knows the danger and we need to pay attention to his warnings.

Wait until you are married to kiss.  That is the safest route and how God planned it.

GIRLS!  The next time some guy wants to find out the flavor of your lipstick, tell him where you bought it! 

Pr. Jeff Fromholz
GB Team
Santarem-PA/Brazil 
(03/17/2002)3181086810677108681067700  11 2 31101637660000admin0 0.000000 00000821FERRARI OR BUG?<img border="0" src="/images/princ10e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

In the midst of all of this talk about sex before marriage and virginity, I have decided to hitch a ride and also speak on the subject.

Imagine if this was one of those sites that you could enter and have an opportunity to win a car and one day you actually entered and won.  Cool, huh?!

Now, you have to pick your prize.  You can have a 1976, fairly good condition, Volkswagen Bug delivered to your doorstep tomorrow or you can wait for an unspecified amount of time, remembering that the prize is guaranteed, for a brand new Ferrari.  Which one will you choose?  For me, the choice is easy.  I would wait for the Ferrari, which I happen to personally think is a totally awesome car.  Ferrari or Bug, which would you choose?

Now, how many of you plan on getting married one day?   I am sure that the majority of you are sitting there nodding your heads to the affirmative.  Maybe some of you are even blushing.  Anyhow, what kind of spouse do you want?  Ferrari or Bug?  Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who fall into the category of the “Bug,” people who are a little “used” or with some “miles” already on them; people who didn’t feel it important to wait for their husband or wife to have sexual relations.  The world is full of “Bugs”.  But, there are some Ferraris out there.  You just have to wait and trust God.   He will bring you your Ferrari.  And believe me, it is worth the wait.

There is one thing though that needs to be said here.  We know that everyone wants to marry a “Ferrari”, someone who waited until there wedding day to have sexual relations (including kissing).  But, what do you need to do to get that type of person, a Ferrari.  The hard truth is this: “To get a Ferrari, you have to be a Ferrari.”  Quite rarely will a Ferrari desire or want a Bug.  And someone who waited until his/her wedding day is not looking for someone experienced and used.

I remember when I bought my first car.  I was 17 years old, had $700 and a big need for a car.  And the only car that I could afford was a rusty, four door, 1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale.  The only thing bigger than the name was the car itself.  It was huge, a regular boat.  The car also had this huge noise problem.  That thing was so loud that my mother knew that I was coming home a full five minutes before I actually arrived.  Lots of people laughed at my car, and to be honest, it was not the car of my dreams.  But, it was the only one that I could afford.  So, my question to you is this, “How much do you have to offer to your future husband or wife?”  How much of you is left?  How much of you have you already spent or given away?  You can only buy in relation to what you have to spend.  In other words, you can’t buy a Ferrari with $700.  Ferrari or Bug, which do you want?  Ferrari or Bug, which one are you?

If you are perhaps finding yourself outside of the Ferrari category, don’t worry.  Unfortunately, I too did not do all that I should have or could have done to remain pure (I was probably like a Chevette.)  But God, fortunately, is a specialist at restoring and fixing broken and beat up lives.  But, you have to ask Him to forgive for all of your sexual experiences and ask Him to purify you and to help you to say “no” to those that want to “test drive your car.”    Wait for your Ferrari.  God will bring him/her to you.

1Timothy 4:12; Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young.  Be an example to all believers in what you teach, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

God is raising up a pure and holy generation; a generation of Ferraris and you can be a part of it.  Make a decision to be pure, to wait until you are married to have sexual relations (even kissing).  This is God’s plan for your life and what He wants.  The choice is yours.  Ferrari or Bug?

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA/Brazil 
(04/17/2002)3321086810764108714394100  11 2 31101905512000admin0 0.000000 000002621COURTING – The latest fad in dating or the real deal?Let me begin by stating that I am no way intending to criticize or poke fun at any person or system that the church today has adopted. I am simply commenting on what I see and what God says. If you do not agree with the opinions expressed here, you can write me. I would like to hear from you.

[b]What is courting and how is it different from dating?[/b]

<img border="1" src="/images/epist_new2.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">Courting is a way in which a young man and a young woman can approach one another with the intention of marrying. It is how it was always done up until about 100 years ago. Dating is a relatively new way of relating to the opposite sex in comparison with courting. In courting, the parents were always involved and their opinions had weight. Imagine if your parents knew about everyone that you have gone out with (or what you have done). Courting is all about marriage. This is the only reason to court. You court to see if there is any reason why you shouldn’t marry the person, not to see if there is perhaps enough to at least try. There are no “test-drives” to see if you really like to other person or to find out if you are compatible. Courting is something that is meant to happen once ending up in a marriage that lasts until “death ‘til we part.” Dating is something that happens many times and always ends up with someone hurt, with a broken heart or scarred for life. But if you are lucky, in dating, you might actually get married and maybe even stay married for a few years. There is NO romantic involvement in courting. Only after the pastor says, “Now you can kiss your bride.”

Let be honest here and take our medicine. Dating is not working out (it never did). Dating is a farce and Christian dating a lie. Christian dating does not exist. It never did. It is just a smokescreen to hide the reality of what is really happening in order to deceive many well-intentioned individuals; and up until now, it has worked pretty well.

I have actually heard of churches that have set up special date nights, dinner and dancing, in order to try and “hook up” the singles. Cool, huh? Give me a break. I have never heard of something so stupid and potentially dangerous in my life. Why don’t we just stick them out on a street corner and try to sell them, it would be a hole lot easier and maybe even less painful?

I was trying to imagine it must have been like in a leaders meeting trying to set up one of these events:

- “Hey, I have a good idea. Let’s try and help our youth fall into sin. Let’s create a dating night for them.”
- “Good idea, Deacon Temptation. Let’s try to fill their lives with pain and hurtful experiences that will eventually make their marriages more difficult that they should have been.”

Do you find this way of speaking strange? Tell me that it’s not true. If our youth are having a hard time walking in purity today (and they are), to what end are we creating these “nights” if not to help them fall into sin?

[b]The truth about dating:[/b]

Dating in comparison with marriage is nothing more than an act of self-gratification. Young people date in order to satisfy their own personal needs. It’s all about you. I have never heard of a young man breaking up with his girlfriend because she was unhappy. But I have heard of plenty who have broken up because they themselves were not happy. It is a totally self-based thing. Dating, for another thing, is based entirely on deception; someone trying to be something that he is not in order for the other to like him and all the while hiding his problems. That is why we hear so many times, “He/She is not the same person that I fell in love with.” Duuuh! Welcome to the world of those who think with their brains. Of course he/she is not the same person. They already conquered you. They already got what they wanted. Why do they need to go on pretending now? Do you understand me? I know, I know, your dating relationship is not like that. Yeah, and my pit bull doesn’t bite.

“But, dating is cultural thing.” Sex before marriage and living together are also cultural curses in our country. So what? Let’s all run out and buy condoms? Are we obligated to accept and do what the world does, just because it is perhaps cultural? There are things in our culture that are acceptable, and there are things that are not. There are things that God approves of, and things that He detests. The Bible is not silent in how we should conduct ourselves in regards to relationships with those of the opposite sex. Promiscuity was never acceptable.

And for those of you who like to say that this is just my opinion and has no Biblical basis, here are a few verses:

2 Timothy 2:22; Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust. Follow anything that makes you want to do right. Pursue faith and love and peace, and enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.

Romans 6:12; Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires.

1Co 1:1-9; Now about the questions you asked in your letter. Yes, it is good to live a celibate life. But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband. (You can read the rest)

1Co 1:8-9; Now I say to those who aren't married and to widows--it's better to stay unmarried, just as I am. But if they can't control themselves, they should go ahead and marry. It's better to marry than to burn with lust.

1Ti 5:1-2; Never speak harshly to an older man, but appeal to him respectfully as though he were your own father. Talk to the younger men as you would to your own brothers. Treat the older women as you would your mother, and treat the younger women with all purity as your own sisters.

Mt 5:29-30; So if your eye--even if it is your good eye--causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand--even if it is your stronger hand--causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

1Ti 4:12; Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you teach, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

1Co 6:18; Run away from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.

Everybody should now understand what is courting and how it is different from dating. But, are there really people courting today and does it work?

Yes, courting does work and there are people actually doing it in the world today. But, let’s be real honest here for a moment, and forgive me if I turn your “golden calf” into dust. Very few are actually courting like they should be and how it has always been done. Many have started with good intentions (you know what they say about good intentions) only to lose them somewhere long the way. What I see and am hearing from many of you is that courting has become nothing more than another way of dating with good intentions in the beginning. Or, to put it another way, many of those who started out wanting to walk in holiness have ended up falling into the same sexual temptations and sins as those who are “dating.” And I know many young people who are “courting” for the fifth or sixth time. Try and figure that one out. 

The truth about courting is that is good, Biblical…and rare.

Let’s be honest and put an end to this type of “courting.” Walk in holiness and wait for the one that God will bring you; the one that will complete you.
God bless you!

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ/Brazil6661091114010109111401000  11 2 31108651672000admin0 0.000000 000001321SHOOT THE BALL!How many of us want to be used by God?  Really want to be used for His glory?

Most Christians today will respond in the affirmative to the two previous questions.  But, a lot of Christians are not being used.  So, what’s the problem?

To be used by God, you need two things, desire and courage.  Without desire, you will never do anything, not for God, not even for yourself.  To act in any situation, you need to have desire; a will to act, or you will do absolutely nothing.  Imagine a young guy who is really hungry, but has no desire to eat; he will eventually die of starvation because he doesn’t want to eat.  Many “want” to be used by God so long as God does the acting.  They pray, “God, here I am.  I’m willing to be used if you want to use me.” That’s not desire!  That’s religion!  Doing and saying what you think you ought to do and say.  Desire is something that comes from your heart.  Desire is something that manifests itself in your time alone with God.  Something that manifests itself with tears and crying out, imploring God to use your life for His glory.  Like Rachel, Jacob’s wife, one day she grabbed his clothing and said, “Give me children or I’ll die!” She had a desire so strong in her to have children that she preferred to die rather than live without having children.  That needs to be our attitude in relation to being used of God.  “God use my life or I’ll die!  I’d rather die and go to heaven than live and not be used by You!”

Along with desire, you also have to have courage.  Desire is the will to do something.  Courage is the doing of it.  When you start really seeking God and crying out for Him to use your life, He will respond.  And that is when you are going to need courage, the courage to obey.  The number one reason that Christians do not tell others about Jesus is FEAR; fear of being rejected, fear of being mocked, fear of what others will think of them.  But, where’s the fear of the fact that there are people who are going to spend eternity in hell without Jesus if you don’t tell them?  They need you to tell them the truth about Jesus.  How He died on the cross in their place and paid the price for all of their sins so that they can be forgiven and have eternal life.

Imagine that you are in the 7th game of the NBA Finals.  Your team is down by one point and there are ten seconds left in the fourth quarter and you are bringing the ball up the court.  You can hear the crowds yelling and counting down the seconds.  10...9...8...you realize that you need to shoot the ball.  And you realize that if you make it, you will be the hero.  But, if you miss, your team will lose and you will be blamed.  7...6...5...4...you stop, the fear grabs you...3...2...1...the buzzer sounds, and you didn’t shoot the ball.  Your team just lost the NBA Finals.  Imagine your coach.  Imagine your teammates.  Imagine the crowd.  Everyone screaming at you, “Why didn’t you shoot the ball?”  If you would have at least thrown the shot up, you would have had a chance to win.  But, without shooting the ball, you don’t have a chance to make a basket.

It’s the same thing with God and with the things of God.  Sure, there exists the possibility that someone will reject he gospel or will make fun of you.  And everybody experiences fear sometimes.  But these are not excuses for you not to act.  If you never witness to somebody, I can guarantee you that you will never win somebody for Jesus.  You have to shoot the ball.  God, our coach, and all of the angels in heaven are cheering for you and yelling the same thing, “Shoot the ball!” Shoot the ball and leave the results with God.  If the ball finds the net, the glory is His.  But, at least shoot the ball.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (05/19/2002)2921087049493108704949300  11 2 31102179940000admin0 0.000000 000001421PAY ATTENTION TO THE TAIL!<img border="0" src="/images/princ12e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

One time when I was the speaker at a crusade in the interior, I had an experience that I will never forget.  I remember waiting for my ride to show when all of the sudden, the pastor called me saying that it was time to go.  I found it a bit strange, as I hadn't heard the motor of any vehicle approaching.  I quickly found out why as I left the house and found a bull and a cart waiting for me.  But, it was all right with me.  I’m willing to try anything at least once.  While we were going to the crusade and conversing, one thing just couldn’t escape my attention, the rear of the bull.  It was hard not to see being all of about three feet in front of me.  So, out of curiosity, I asked the pastor about the situation that we found ourselves, being so very close to potential danger as I saw it, and if he had ever, well, gotten, shall we say, dirty?  He told me that, yes, one time as he was going to church, the tail raised up and well, you know.  Knowing this little fact changed my journey to the crusade, as I was overly preoccupied with the tail of the bull, watching for any little movement.  Thank God we arrived exactly as we had left, clean.

Only after this experience, I began to think of how the devil is exactly like that bull.  Generally, we are only worried when we are face to face with a bull.  As soon as he turns his back, and horns, we relax, thinking that he is going to leave us in peace and unharmed.  That is a huge error!  Pay attention to the tail!

It is usually easier to fight the devil when he is obviously attacking us or we know that we are in a battle.  But, when he turns his back, be careful.  Don’t relax!  He will “dirty” you.  I remember one time when I was watching a children’s program with my daughter when a commercial for Carnival came on.  I didn’t immediately notice anything out of the ordinary until my daughter asked me, “Daddy, why is that woman naked?”  I simply responded with “AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!  I, I, I, I don’t know.”  I immediately turned the TV off.  The devil got me when I was not prepared.  I honestly didn’t see it coming.  Only yesterday while I was on my way to the youth service at church and singing of my love for Jesus, I passed a billboard with a woman’s large, naked rear on it.  Right there in plain view.  It was impossible to miss.  Once again, the devil “dirtied” me when I wasn’t ready.  I didn’t see the tail on the woman, nor did I look for it, but she must have had one.  And how many times has a brother or sister in the Lord sought you out to inform you of an urgent “prayer request” for one of the members of the church only to end up telling you everything that didn’t need or want to know about that person?  All in the name of Christian concern and so that you can best pray for the situation.  You were “dirtied.”  It’s called gossip, and it’s a sin.  Or what about that joke that seems so funny until the punch line that just happens to be dirty.  Pay attention to the tail!

As a general rule, when you begin to smell something strange, run!  Don’t wait for the tail to go up.  Flee temptation!  In my opinion, the TV looks an awful lot like the rear of the devil.  I’m not saying that everything on the TV is bad; after all, there is GBTV.  But the majority of what passes on the TV is filth and useless.  If you sit behind the rear of the devil, it’s only a matter of time until you will find yourself “dirtied.”  Pay attention to the tail!

I know that all of us at one time or another have found ourselves dirty without having had any intention of being that way.  And when this happens, there is only one thing to do, run to God and ask for forgiveness.  He wants to forgive and cleanse you.

1 John 1:9 - But if we confess our sins to him, he (God) is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.

Three Hints:

1 - When the devil turns his back, don’t relax. 

2 - Don’t stay behind the devil. 

3 - If you get “dirtied,” ask forgiveness, get cleaned up and continue on.  Don’t quit! 

Pay attention to the devil’s Tail!

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (06/11/2002)2571087049557108714366500  11 2 31102378666000admin0 0.000000 000001521ABORTION<img border="0" src="/images/princ13e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

She was only 17, and as she left the doctor’s office, the nurse told her, “God will never forgive you for this.”  And so it was with these words that she was forced to once again start her life; with the fear and almost certainty that it was true, God would never forgive her.  It was not as though she had wanted to make that decision, but it seemed the only option.  What was she going to do with a baby?   She was way too young to be a mother, and besides, her boyfriend didn’t want it either.

Unfortunately, this is an all too common situation in which many young girls find themselves these days.  Faced with the fear of an unwanted pregnancy, a boyfriend who wants nothing to do with a baby and a lot of unknowns in a world that says it’s okay to “terminate” a pregnancy.  The unfortunate fact is that a lot of young girls are having abortions done.  So, where do we stand on this?

I would like to take a different side of this abortion argument, a side that is often many times forgotten.  I am not, nor will I ever, condone or speak of abortion as though it okay, as it is not.  It is quite simply the taking of a life, murder.  Nor am I going to take the side of the unborn child as we have all heard the argument many times from this point of view.  What I would like to do is look at the girl who has had the abortion.  Not in any way to defend her decision, but to defend her person.

Many times, abortion is looked at and spoken of as though it were the unpardonable sin.  It is not.  It is no different, and please forgive me if you disagree, than any other sin in God’s eyes.  Every sin, including the exaggerations that many times come out of our mouths, more commonly known, yet not referred to, as lies, put Jesus on the cross.  Jesus did not suffer any more on that cross for the sin of abortion than he did for someone’s gossip or gluttony.  Yet, somehow we view and treat the sin of abortion as the sin to end all sin. Let me reiterate that I am in no way in favor of or condoning abortion.  I am merely trying to bring things back to a more balanced position.

My concern after an abortion is no longer with the unborn child of which I have no way of saving and of whom I believe is already in heaven, but on the potentially destroyed life of a young woman leaving a doctor’s office with a conscience so heavy that it almost prohibits her forward progress only to be met by some uncaring and cold nurse who then informs her that she has just purchased a non-refundable ticket to hell.  And all of this is before she even leaves the office to then be met by some overzealous crowd of “Christians” screaming “Murderer! Murderer!”  Somehow I fail to find Jesus in such acts of emotion void of any compassion.  Yes, I believe that our presence is important at the clinics.  Yes, I believe that we need to speak to the women leaving, even the doctors who would commit such a crime.  But, I believe that we need to come as Jesus would and did come.  He came in love.  He came with compassion.  He saw beyond the sinful act and saw a person in desperate need of love and forgiveness.  And this is how we need to see and treat them, both those who have had abortions and those who have performed them.

Luke 8 tells the story of a certain “immoral woman” who came to Jesus as he was eating with a group of Pharisees and fell at his feet and washed them with her tears and dried them with her hair.  Afterwards, she anointed them with expensive perfume. The truth is, the woman was a prostitute.  Jesus knew it, and she didn’t need anyone to tell her either.  Nor do those who have had abortions need someone informing them that they have killed a living being, they already know.   Their conscience already condemns them, much like the prostitute.  Why do you think that she was crying?  She felt condemned, yet she knew what she needed, and she knew whom she could get it from.  Jesus is the only one who can and does forgive sin.  She certainly did not need the “help” or condemning glances of those also seated at the table as they discussed how “filthy” she was and how ignorant Jesus must have been to have let such a “piece of trash” touch him.  What she needed is what she got from Jesus; unconditional love and forgiveness for the sins that she knew she has already committed.   How great is the mercy and grace of God?  Certainly the depth of His unconditional love is something that we all can experience yet never fully understand.

I would like to end this with a few points.  The first being, “Let us not give up on trying to prevent the sin of abortion, yet, if the act has already been committed, let us not give up on the individual who has committed the act, for they are needing to see and feel the love of God like never before.”   Let us also remember that albeit a horrible act, their suffering has only just begun.  For, although there exists forgiveness for sin, loss of memory is rare.  We must be reminded that it was after all, her baby.  And her conscience is not soon to let her forget that she took the life of her own child.  What they need to hear is that there is forgiveness for sins, all sins, including the sin of abortion, not words of condemnation.  Jesus blood was sufficient for all.  So, let us be like Jesus and not like those Pharisees.

Secondly, if you have had an abortion, this is for you.  This is for you to understand that Jesus loves you and will forgive you.  He is simply waiting for you to come to him and ask for forgiveness.  Wash His feet with your tears.  Dry them with your hair.  Let the healing begin.  And this is not only for girls.  There are just as many guys out there who are just as responsible for the abortions that have taken place.  You too need to feel the guilt of your sin and ask for forgiveness.  Jesus is waiting.  The time is now.

1John 1:9; But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.

“Let us continue to be the voice of the unborn, yet, let us also continue to be the voice of the One who gave His life on the cross for sinners that are needing to feel and experience His love and forgiveness.”

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (07/05/2002)2651087049620108714359400  11 2 31102586038000admin0 0.000000 000001621HOMOSEXUALITY<img border="0" src="/images/princ14e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

That dude is gay, and I ain’t talking about happy.

That was my first impression and the first thing that went through my head the first time I saw “Matt.” I remember it like it was yesterday. I was sitting there with one of my disciples, drinking a coke, when he passed by, dressed in a tight, hot pink, polyester shirt and a pair of black pants the same style. But, it wasn’t so much the way that he was dressed or the fact that he had a purse that caught my attention, but the way in which he walked. He had a very definite “I’m gay and so what of it?” swing going on. I remember watching him in shock as my disciple and I sat drinking our cokes in the middle of our little village. I don’t know what surprised me more, the reckless abandon with which he flaunted his homosexuality, the shock of seeing such a thing in a small little village in the middle of the Amazon basin or the surprising repulsion that I felt within me.

Finally, I caught myself and asked my friend who he was. He replied that the guys name was “Matt” and that he is gay. (The second part I already knew.) As I sat there, part in shock and part in judgment, I felt God tell me to witness to him. My reaction was like, “WHAT?!?” “HIM?!?” I mean, "I don’t know anything about gay guys. Heck, I never even met one, or at least one who admitted it.” You have to understand, I grew up in a part of the USA that still doesn’t accept homosexuality as an “alternative lifestyle.” Being gay, where I come from, is the surest way to get beat up. And calling someone gay is the quickest way to find yourself in a fight. So, here I am, confronted with the most obviously gay guy that I have ever seen in my life and God wants me to talk to him. Then, before I realized what I was doing, I announced to my friend that I was going to invite him to church only to be met by the same reaction of what I had just felt, “WHAT?!?” “HIM?!?” The only problem was that Matt had already left, so I would have to wait until the next time I saw him to invite him.

I remember going home that night and thinking about Matt and for the first time, I really felt sorry for someone trapped in the sin of homosexuality. I didn’t feel like poking fun at him, but crying for him. I couldn’t imagine what he had already gone through in his life and what he had to daily go through being so different. I hurt for him, and I hurt for me. Never before had I viewed myself as a homophobic, but confronted with truth of who I was and how I felt, it was obvious that I had issues to deal with in my own life. I repented to God for my attitudes, which by the way, were nothing less than sin, and asked God to give me an understanding of Matt and a true love and concern for his life and eternity.

It took me three weeks to finally see Matt again, and when I finally saw him, there was something different in me, I was actually glad to see him. All of the prejudices and fears, if that’s what they were, were gone. I was actually so glad to see him, that I put my arm around him and hugged him. Imagine his surprise. After three weeks of waiting, I didn’t waste any time in inviting him to church; actually it was a birthday party, as that was the only thing going on that day. I remember watching him as he entered into the church that night, and I remember the faces of the church members with their mouths wide open in disbelief that Matt was coming into our church. I didn’t waste any time as I ran up to him and hugged him, adding to the shock of my members, and welcomed him to our church. I stayed with him throughout the party and then invited him to come to our youth meting on Saturday. He went on Saturday and more than that, he gave his life to the Lord, beginning a new phase in his life.

That was two years ago and Matt is still following the Lord. He is now the youth leader and most successful cell group leader in the church. It is incredible to see what God has and is doing in Matt’s life, not to mention what he has done in mine as a result of Matt and his friendship. I have begun to see people as Jesus sees them and am learning to love as he does. As a result of Matt’s conversion, numerous people in the village have also given their lives to the Lord. 

Just a note: God loves gay people. He does not love nor approve of their sin. But, he loves them as a person, a person for whom he died on the cross. And God not only can, but also does forgive and change those struggling with the sin of homosexuality. 

Another note: God loves those who struggle with loving gay people and seeing them as Jesus does. And God not only can, but also does forgive and change those struggling with the sin of prejudice and of sitting in judgment of others.

1Co 6:9-10 - "Don't you know that those who do wrong will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don't fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, who are idol worshipers, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexuals, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, abusers, and swindlers – none of these will have a share in the Kingdom of God."

Homosexuality is a sin that can and will prohibit you from entering into heaven and in the end, take you hell.

James 2:10-13 - "And the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God's laws. For the same God who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." So if you murder someone, you have broken the entire law, even if you do not commit adultery. So whenever you speak, or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law of love, the law that set you free. For there will be no mercy for you if you have not been merciful to others. But if you have been merciful, then God's mercy toward you will win out over his judgment against you."

Self-righteousness is a sin that can and will prohibit you from entering into heaven and in the end, take you to hell.

Is 53:6 - "All of us have strayed away like sheep. We have left God's paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him (Jesus) the guilt and sins of us all."

1John 1:9 - "But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong."

God is a good God and no sin is beyond the reach of his forgiveness.


[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (08/01/2002)2811087049677108714350000  11 2 31102819318000admin0 0.000000 000001721DON'T LOOK AT THE WOMAN IN RED!<img border="0" src="/images/princ15e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

In the movie the Matrix, there is a scene in which Morpheus takes Neo into a simulated Matrix program in order to explain the Matrix and how it works. As they are walking in a black and white world and as Morpheus is speaking, Neo becomes noticeably distracted by a seductively dressed woman in red passing by and looking at him in such as a way to get his attention. At which point Morpheus agitated stops and asks him, “Are you listening to me or looking at the women in red?” Neo, stumbling to respond, is then interrupted by Morpheus who tells him to look again. And when Neo turns to look, a gun meets him right in his face. 

Seemingly insignificant in the whole of the film, the spiritual truths found in this scene are huge. How many times in our lives has the devil sent that woman or man dressed in red to pass by in front of us? And how many times when God himself was trying to talk to us? Too many times I am sure. The real issue is not how many times he devil has sent them, but how many times have we looked? And here we have the discussion, or better yet, question: “Is it a sin to look?” I grew up hearing the phrase, “You can look but you can’t touch.” To the human rational, this statement may seem profound and true. But, the human rationale is not the plum by which we measure things. 

Jesus said in Mt 5:28, “Anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Jesus took the idea of adultery one-step further in saying that the looking at and thinking of a woman in an impure manner were just as much sin as the actual act. It is all a matter of the heart. And that is what Jesus is concerned with. 

This issue is generally regarded as one that only men deal with, but that is simply not true. Just as many woman look at men’s bodies with more than the look of a mother to her son as men look at women wrongly. I can’t begin to count how many near accidents I have seen as a result of someone craning their neck to look behind them for one last glimpse of someone’s rear end. Humorous as it may seem, it is in reality a very dangerous and grave sin. The reason being this, it all starts with your eyes. It is a very dangerous path that leads to even larger sins and eventually to hell itself. When you turn to look, the gun is right there in satan’s hand, waiting to meet you.

And it’s not only in the world outside your home. Thanks to modern technology, primarily the computer, it has become even easier to sin with your eyes and you don’t even have to leave home. Right there in the privacy of your own home, you can see naked men and women. Now, you tell me, do you suppose that it’s OK, since you are only looking and not touching? Obviously, you can’t touch as the image is only there on your computer screen. But, how many have been led to then fantasize about that naked person on the computer and wind up masturbating? I dare to guess that a good majority. That’s the danger in the look. To see is not the sin as we see things every day in life that we have or had no intention in seeing, at which point we must merely turn our heads and keep going. The sin is when we intentionally look again and then the image becomes imbedded in our mind only to later bear bad fruit in the form of fantasizing and masturbation. My fear is that too many people are trapped and bound by such subtle sins in life, sins that can be so easily hidden and yet very embarrassing to admit. Thus leaving many in their own self made prison to live fruitless lives full of guilt and condemnation.

Worse yet, what will happen to the one who has for some time fantasized about a certain situation if it should present itself in real life. After having “trained” for so long for that very hour, do you honestly think that they will be able to stand up against it and flee? I doubt it. And that is the danger.

Legality is given to the devil in the oh, so subtle, “checking out” phase. Small sins unchecked always lead to larger ones. He who has not trained himself to say no in the little neighborhood fights will not find the strength to say “no” in the middle of the war. A little crack in the door (and that is what the devil is looking for) soon becomes a door wide open. 

Radical? You bet, to the extreme. Being radical in this area is the only way to be guaranteed the victory. And let me take the time to say that God is not looking for sissy, weak-willed Christians in order to win this world. He is looking for radical, committed, sanctified and holy believers. He is looking for a generation of youth who are going to walk in holiness and in an anointing that is going to turn this world upside down. You are that generation. Start walking in holiness and start utilizing the anointing that God is putting into your life, an anointing to win souls, heal the sick and raise the dead. Holiness is a decision. It is your decision. It is a decision between spiritual life and death, sitting on God’s bench or playing in the game, being used or left behind. 

DON’T LOOK AT THE WOMAN (MAN) IN RED!

1 Timothy 4:12; Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.


[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (08/27/2002)2891087049735108714342100  11 2 31103043964000admin0 0.000000 000001821IS YOUR LIGHT SHINING?<img border="0" src="/images/princ16e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

"HACK! HACK! HACK!" 

There was a story once of a man who traveled around selling cough medicine. Unfortunately, he had a rather tough time selling his medicine. Not that it wasn't a good product, or that he wasn't a good salesman, for he was. The problem was his horrible, persistent cough. Right in the middle of his sales pitch, he would drop to his knees coughing and sputtering and gasping for breath. At which point, most would leave. And rarely would anyone buy. Finally one day, someone from the crowd yelled out, "Why don't you buy some of your own medicine and show us how it works!" 

That is what the world is crying out to us as we try to "sell" them Jesus. Lots speak of what Jesus can and will do in someone's life, but far fewer actually show. And it is at precisely this point that many of the world turn and walk away. Something is lost as we lay on the ground half sputtering, half talking in our sin and trying to tell them how God can heal them. You can't sell what you haven't bought. And you can't give what you don't have. Unfortunately, the world is not half as stupid or unobservant as we think they are. It is not supposed to be this way. God has called us to be lights.

Mt 5:14-16; You are the light of the world-like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.

We are called to be lights. To show the world the truth as it shines through our lives. Talk is cheap. They want and need to see it. We need to stop and examine our lives to see if we truly are shining. Certainly no one is perfect, but that is no excuse for complacency and compromise. I recently came into contact with a poll here in Brazil in which over the course of the last five years, 5,000 professing Christian youth from 22 different denominations were asked as to their sexual practices. What came out of that poll scared and woke me up. Here are their findings: 

- 52% of professing Christian youth have lost their virginity as Christians
- 26% of those who have lost their virginity are currently sexually active
- The average age for a Christian young man to lose his virginity is 14
- The average age for a Christian young woman to lose her virginity is 16
- 17% of theses girls between 14 and 18 years old are already mothers or pregnant with their first child

Now, can you imagine a professing Christian girl, who just happens to be pregnant, witnessing to a non-Christian youth and trying to tell him or her about their need for Jesus and how He can change their life? Or a Christian young man as he has just finished having sex with a non-Christian young woman rolling over and trying to tell her of Jesus and her need of salvation? It just doesn't work. If our lives don't show changes and something different, then our faith is worthless to the world. They want to see what God can do and has done. We have to stop coughing in order for them to even become interested in our medicine. 

I remember recently being at a wedding in which a young man came up to me, and as he was drooling and falling all over me with a beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other, I was trying to think of an angle in which to tell him about Jesus when a Christian youth busted in and said, "Oh! I see you've met Brian. He's in the ministry with us." OK. I'm not one to judge, but his light got put out somewhere in all of the beers. My friends, God wants us to be different, we are called to be different. We are called to be radically different, even weird for Jesus. 

One of the biggest roadblocks to non-believers becoming Christians is the lives of the very Christians who are speaking to them of Jesus. We talk the talk but know nothing of the walk. Do you suppose there have been times in your life where a non-Christian has looked at you and said, "I don't think so"? Do you think there have been times when a non-Christian has been paying more attention to your cough than to your speech? I'm sure that we have all been caught in that one before. But thankfully, our God is a God full of mercy, a God of second chances and a God who heals coughs, even persistent ones. God has called us to be lights. Let your light shine before men.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (11/21/2002)2931087049804108714334500  11 2 31103786650000admin0 0.000000 000001921WHAT?!<img border="0" src="/images/princ17e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

“What?”  That was the first thing that went through my head.  The second was, “How in the world did this one come about?”

About one month ago, one of my disciples came up to me after a service.  I could see that he was a little bit bothered and needed to talk.  What followed, I must admit, I was a bit unprepared for.  What he said was this, “Pastor, some guy came up to me today at school and said that you are gay.”  Okay, I’ve been accused of a lot of things in my life, but this was a new one.  As he went on to explain, I found out that this was the gossip running around the school in which we had been recently ministering.  Great.  What had apparently happened was that someone had seen me in my truck with a bunch of homosexuals, thus assuming and accusing me of being one too.   Before I go on, let me say that I am in no way ridiculing anyone who may be struggling with this lifestyle and sin.  I feel for you, as does Jesus.

Anyhow, back to my disciple. He was pretty upset at someone having said such a thing that he almost hit them in the mouth.  I’m glad he didn’t.  Besides, it was true.  Not the gay part, but about having a truck full of homosexuals.  One day as I was leaving the church, five homosexual young men flagged me down and asked for a ride.  I saw it as a perfect opportunity to speak to them about the love of Christ and invite them to church, which I did.  And apparently someone saw me stop at the park and let them out, thus leading to the rumor.

As I thought of the situation and how the devil works to try and make a good thing bad, God brought to my mind the story of when Jesus went to Mathew’s house for a banquet and all of the religious leaders got upset because he was eating with drunks, crooks and prostitutes and also accused him of being the same.  (Mt 9:9-13)  The funny thing is that the world has not changed, nor have the devil’s tactics.  It is true that people will judge us by whom we hang out with and for that reason, we need to pay attention to who are our friends.  But, that in no way is an excuse for not telling people about Jesus.  If I was worried that every time I talked to a drunk I would be accused of being one or every time that I talked to a homosexual I would be accused of being one, I probably wouldn’t talk to them. But, you know what, I am not worried about that.  Neither was Jesus.  I let God worry about my reputation.  He will defend me.  If Jesus were here today in the flesh, I am sure hat he too would give rides to homosexuals and talk to the drunks and prostitutes.  They are the reason that he came. Jesus did not come for the “well”, but for the “sick.”

We cannot allow the devil to stop us from witnessing because of fear of what people might think.  Jesus wasn’t concerned about what people were thinking and saying about him as he hung on the cross dying for your sins and neither should you or I.

Just to let you know how God turned the story around, one of the homosexuals came forward at the school and told people about how grateful to God he was that I gave them a ride as there was a group of people after them, wanting to beat them up because they were gay.  He told people that I had saved his life and that he intended to visit our church. We’ll see.  Remember, Jesus loves the gays, prostitutes, drunks, drug addicts, gang members, criminals, etc, as much as he loves you and I.  And he has put us here to tell and show them His love.  Don’t allow yourself to be more concerned with your reputation than the salvation of someone going to hell. 

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (02/03/2003)3061087049856108714324800  11 2 31104426016000admin0 0.000000 000002021SEX, PIZZA AND A BULLET<img border="0" src="/images/princ19e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

If a really good pizza restaurant were to reveal to you that 1 in 10 (10%) of their customers got food poisoning and some of them had even died, would you eat there. I know that I wouldn’t and I really like pizza. The problem for me would be that the risk is just to high. No piece of pizza is worthy risking death. 

What if the condom companies were to reveal to you that their condoms were only 85% affective against contracting HIV and that if only used “correctly and consistently.” Well, that is what the “Center for Disease Control” has determined. And that’s the good news. They also determined that there is no scientific proof to claim that condoms provide protection against other sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea and syphilis. “USE A CONDOM!” This is safe sex? I personally very much like sex (with my wife). But, if I were to run a 15% risk (higher than at the pizza place) of contracting HIV and absolutely no assurance that I would not get something else. I am pretty sure that I would abstain. As much as I enjoy sex with my wife, the risk would be just too high. No sexual experience is worth the suffering that HIV inflicts on a person, and the eventual death.

Some may argue though, that 85% is a fairly high success rate. However, when you consider that in Russian roulette, you have a 83.4% chance of firing an empty chamber, the argument ends. Few are stupid enough to participate in this dangerous game. And no sane person would encourage someone else to participate, even though the odds of finding the one bullet are fairly low. The fact is that the risk is to high. No game is worth your life.

Yet we have still have those who propagate a type Russian roulette through the use of a condom. Pointing out the bright side while hiding the reality of the gun, hiding the obvious danger that lies there within. Do you suppose that the condom industry is really only about money rather than true interest in the lives and security of those that are buying their product? 

The only place for safe pizza is in your own kitchen. 

The only place for safe sex is in your own bed with your own wife or husband. If you do not have a wife or husband, then there is no such thing as safe sex. If you are a newborn baby and have no teeth, there is no safe way to eat pizza. But, there is hope. One day, the baby will grow, get teeth and then be able to enjoy a piece of pizza. And, one day those of you who are not yet married will find a wife or a husband and be able to participate in the act of sex with the blessing of God, rather than in sin and under a curse.

There is never a safe place to play Russian roulette. 

2 Ti 2:22; Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust.

1 Th 4:3-5; God wants you to be holy, so you should keep clear of all sexual sin. Then each of you will control your body and live in holiness and honor - not in lustful passions as the pagans do, in their ignorance of God and his ways.

Think twice before you act on your fleshly desires and commit the sin of premarital sex. The stakes are just too high.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (04/01/2003)3411087049907108714308100  11 2 31104918862000admin0 0.000000 000002121THE BIG CHRISTIAN LIE<img border="0" src="/images/princ20e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Mt 22:37

We all know this verse by heart and recite it as though we actually believe it and with the conviction that we actually live it. We even sing songs about this all-consuming love that we have for Him. And hidden in this is where we find the big Christian lie.

The big Christian lie that we find in the church is not in and of the church itself, but in those that make up the church. A lie that is slowly destroying the body of Christ, a lie so subtle that we at times do not even detect it. A lie as to who we are and what God means to us. We, without effort or thought, are quick to sing of our passion for Jesus, how He is our all in all. And that is the big Christian lie!

We spend our whole week looking at things we shouldn’t look at, thinking things we shouldn’t think, doing things we shouldn’t do and going places we shouldn’t go yet on Sunday we have the gall and falseness to actually show up at church, raise our hands and lie. To whom are we lying? Perhaps to the person to our right or left who is also caught up in the same game of deception as we? Or to God who sees all and knows all? He sees us for what we are, spiritual adulterers. We spend six days a week running after other lovers, ones that we have convinced ourselves that we truly do not love yet never seem to find reason or strength enough to give up. God is not fooled. Nor are we if we stop long enough to think about it.

I publicly declare everywhere that I go to speak of my passion for my wife. So comes the question, “What is passion?” Passion is a profound love that consumes every part of your being, right down to your thoughts. A love that is ever present. No matter where I am, my thoughts always return to my wife. My love for her consumes me. Now imagine if I was to declare to you of my passion for my wife and then reveal to you that I spend on average 20 minutes a day with her and that on the weekends I go out with a couple of other women that I really do not love but just can’t seem to shake loose of. Who would believe me? No, you would look me in the eye and say, “YOU, MY FRIEND, ARE A LIAR!” And you would be right in saying so. That is not passion. That is not even love, although it might be possibly considered convenient usury. And you who point the finger at me and call me a liar, “What of the passion and love of your life?” How much time do you spend with Him daily? And how many other lovers do you have on the side? Yet still you have the courage to stand up in church and raise your voice above all others as though you actually hope that God hears your phoniness. I would not even lip-sync such a thing if it were not to be true. What has happened to the church of God? What has happened to passionate, true, undivided love for our Savior? 

The big Christian lie is a body of believers pretending to be what they are not and declaring a lie as though it were the truth. The church is no longer a gathering of worshippers and lovers of God, but a gathering of spiritual whores. I did not use the word prostitute as excuse can be made for them in that they at least are paid for what they do and could possibly justify it as a means to survival. But what of the church today who runs after other lovers and freely gives herself away at no cost and then unashamedly returns to her husband still wet from the sweat of another to declare her passion and love for him?

Where have we gone wrong? When did we begin to deceive ourselves into thinking that God would be satisfied with most of our heart? Imagine a young man proposing to the one that he “loves” and offering to her 90% (and that is a gross exaggeration in the case of the church) of his love. What girl would be foolish or desperate enough to accept such an offer? I know that my wife wants 100% of my heart and will settle for nothing less, nor should she. If I come wanting to negotiate or perhaps divide my love with another, there will be problems. God is the same way, only more. My wife never gave her life for me. Yet, God gave his only Son to redeem us. God is not interested in part of your heart. He wants it all. God will settle for nothing less than 100%. And we should offer Him no less. 

“I, the Lord your God am a jealous God.” Ex 20:5

Love that is not 100% is no love at all. And passion that is less than a total giving of oneself should never be spoken of, let alone declared for it is nothing less than a painted up lie. We need to repent of our spiritual adultery, for our measly 20 minutes offered in the name of “love” every morning. We need to speak the truth or not speak at all. I prefer to remain silent in church than declare lies to the One who gave himself for me. If only the whole body of Christ would come to this point. Perhaps for a time we would have very quiet services except for the sound of those crying out in repentance. Yet, perhaps then, God would come and heal His church.

Where we find ourselves today, as a church, is very dangerous. We are in danger of deceiving ourselves right into an eternal hell. A passionless salvation is no salvation at all. A love that is not consuming is no love at all. If you find yourself lacking passion or an all-consuming love for Jesus, perhaps you are lacking the most important thing of all, a true conversion. I say this not to judge but to warn. Many speak of love for God with their mouths but demonstrate love for the world with their lives. 

“If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.” Jn 14:23

“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.” Lk 6:43-44

God is looking for a holy and separate people who not only worship Him with their lips, but also with their hearts. Will he find this in you?.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (05/08/2003)3711087049963108714296800  11 2 31105238548000admin0 0.000000 000002221THE PRODIGAL CHURCH (And her need for Revival)<img border="0" src="/images/princ21e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

In a day and age where the church so closely resembles the world that you often can’t tell the difference and where the prodigal son never left home, we are in great need of a revival. Many times we “think” someone is a Christian only to find out later that he is not. My question is, “What is this ‘think’ business?” What happened to the days of knowing who was saved and who was not? The problem lies within a church that professes love to Christ while at the same time possessing many lovers. The church is, in many ways, dating the world. She is the prodigal son who never left home. Or as Jesus said in Matthew 15:8, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away.” These people tell me all of the right words, but they don’t really mean any of them. They love their sin more than me.

Is this not a picture of the church today, prodigal sons and daughters who never left home? Prodigal sons and daughters who honor God with their lips because it is the “right thing to do” but their hearts are far away. Children who by day do all that is required of them, which, by the way, does not imply love, and by night sneak out of their bedroom window in order to do that which their heart truly desires to do.

Which is worse, the case of the son who left home and later returned repentant or the son whose body never left and whose heart never came home? Oh, how God detests religion. And this is nothing short of that dead spirit of religion. Can you smell the rotting flesh of the many dead Christians of whom He spoke when he uttered those condemning words, “these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away?” And for this very reason I declare that we are in desperate need of a revival. The flies are gathering at the entrance of the house of God.

Thus, we embark on a journey of great contention. Revival for whatever reason seems to be a source of many arguments these days. Most are hesitant to even use the word for fear that some may view them as fanatics or worse yet, heretics. So, I pose the question, “Is God still in the revival business?” Can we hope for and even expect large mass revivals? Can you imagine hundreds, no; thousands of people gathering together in no particular place just to simply seek the face of God? Can you imagine those same people leaving renewed, challenged, more passionate, and with a bigger sense of their responsibility to win the lost? 

II Chronicles 7:14, says, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

If this is not a verse speaking of revival, I do not know what is. This is a plain and clear recipe for the best baked cake of God’s presence that I have yet to see. And to think, we found it in the Bible.

Still the questions remains, “What is revival?” Many mistake revival for mass salvation among non-believers. This I would not argue is unmistakably a work of the Holy Spirit and is quite possibly a result of a revival, but this in and of itself is not revival. Revival has to do with believers, those who already confess Christ as Lord and Savior, thus, “re”vival. It means, “to bring to life again.” In order to revive a dead person, they must first, at one time, be alive. You cannot revive that which has always been dead. For this reason, 2Chr 7:14 speaks of “my people;” “If my people,” the believers. 

Revival is an awakening of the spirit to truly discern where it is; to truly see the sin in which it is sinking fast and to know the utter need of a renewing touch from God; a bigger sense of conviction for sin. For so long, the church has walked holding the hand of the world that I am not sure that we even understand conviction or true repentance anymore. And for this we need revival. We need a heightened sense of our own sin and need for forgiveness. We need to be broken before a holy God.

Revival brings desperation, desperation of life, and a sense that all is not right in our world. It is the hour in which we open our eyes and find ourselves in a pigpen looking upon a corncob with desire. When we ask ourselves as to how we got there and realize that death is knocking at our door. It is the realization of just how far we have wandered from home and the consuming desire to return. And that is what drives us to our knees to seek the mercy of a God who is in no way obligated to give it to us. 

This is what we desperately need. This is what the world desperately needs. The world needs to see a church broken before her God. A church that is no longer in the confusing state of resembling those in which she is trying to win, but a pure and spotless bride. That is what Jesus desires to see. And for this, we need revival. 

Does your heart not cry out for revival? Does your heart not break for the many lost souls merely occupying time and space in our churches? The need for revival is obvious and so are the means by which to obtain it.

God is waiting on men and women. 2Chr 7:14 is a promise given to us. "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." If, then. If the sons and daughters of God will call on His name and humble themselves and repent, then… Then He will act. Then He will heal our land. Then revival will come. God is waiting for his church to get on her knees and return to Him. And when that happens, so will revival.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (06/20/2003)3411087050031108714286800  11 2 31105610074000admin0 0.000000 000002321ARTIFICIAL SEX - "The Big M"<img border="0" src="/images/princ22e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

No, this is not some absurd advertisement for some stupid product that will supposedly make your life complete and happy. (Assuming that sex is that “thing”.) And the “M” is not for McDonald’s, as though the Big Mac is secretly connected to sex, but for “MASTURBATION.” I’ll bet that this is the first time you are seeing this word on a website without some naked man or woman accompanying it.

Why then, would someone in his or her right mind decide to write an article about masturbation? Because, it is a very real and confusing thing in the lives of most young men and woman today and a thing very rarely ever addressed. Every serious statistical study that I have found shows that at least 90% of boys and young men between 13 and 25 years of age pass through periods of habitual masturbation of varying lengths and 65% of girls are found to actually masturbate. The biggest question and concern for most young (and old) people in relation to masturbation is, “Is it a sin?” So, that is what we will try to address here.

The whole problem for me begins with the conversation about virginity. I do a whole lot of youth camps and conferences and I always address the issue of virginity because that is the most valuable thing a young adult has to offer to his or her future spouse. It is also the biggest regret that I live with, the fact that when I married my wife (a Ferrari for sure), I was unable to offer to her all of me because I had already given some away. I no longer possessed the very thing that I really wanted to give to her, my virginity, thus, the regret. 

Now, back to the virginity issue. I always ask the question, “Who is a virgin?” Not for a show of hands, but to emphasize the importance of saving yourself, or the loss of having not saved yourself. After these messages and like ones on purity, there are always those young men who hunt me down to talk about “their struggle.” What began to concern and confuse me is that most of these young men hunting me down were also the ones who had publicly affirmed their virginity. Thus, the crisis and the question, “Can one be a physical virgin only for lack of a partner, yet not a mental one?” And, “Does that pose a problem?”

The Bible says in Mt 5:27-28, “You have heard that the law of Moses says, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

The problem is this, these young men, although never having actually been with a real woman, have already had sex in their minds with more women than King Solomon. And this does pose a problem. I find it a bit deceptive and almost a lie to claim virginity as some badge of honor and purity all the while having sex in your mind, and with your hand, with most of the girls that you know. And girls, don’t think you are free and innocent, this whole thing pertains to you too (65%). We have a moral crisis on our hands and in the church today. And although it would be nice to pretend that this issue pertains only to the youth, whose hormones are overactive, it simply is not true. There are many grown men and women, fathers and mothers, and even pastors who are struggling with this temptation and sin. 

Can we call it sin? Yes, Jesus did. I know, there are those who argue that it is natural. Sure it is. So is going to hell based on the sinful nature that we are born with, but that certainly does not seem like a good option. I have actually seen Christian sites with some poor, confused author writing an article about how masturbation is natural and good so long as you do not think immoral thoughts. Now, that is just plain ridiculous. Why don’t we go to the beach and not think about sand or water? Masturbation is “artificial sex” and nothing more. What on earth are you going to think about? A “Big Mac?” Maybe that “M” does stand for McDonald’s for some. But, I doubt it. Of course people are thinking immoral thoughts or looking at things that they shouldn’t be. And that is where the problem is. God created sex, and any acts that pertain to it, to be practiced and enjoyed only in the covenant of marriage and with your partner. There is really no way to escape it. We can try and justify or look for the opinions of psychiatrists, but the bottom line is that masturbation is nothing more than a cheap way to gratify a sexual desire that we should not be having or entertaining. It is artificial sex and it compromises your spiritual life and relationship with Jesus. Doesn’t seem worth it does it? 

There are many problems that accompany masturbation and the possibility of going blind is not one of them. 

1. The simple and seemingly harmless act (sin) of masturbation very easily can and does become a habit. One that is not easily broken.

2. Your thought life becomes nothing short of perverse and dominated by thoughts of acts that shouldn’t be thought of. This for a Christian is a very scary thought in light of the fact that many who claim to be “saved” will one day be found saying “Lord, Lord.”

3. Your eyes begin to take on a mind and direction of their own. You begin to catch yourself always looking at, and even positioning yourself to be able to look at, the “private” areas of others bodies. Bet you’d like that broadcast up on some big screen TV for all to see. Jesus sees it.

4. The habit of masturbation, and this is one of the biggest misconceptions, does not stop when you get married. The argument that married individuals have it easier because they have a way to realize and release their sexual desires is a total lie. It in fact only becomes more complicated. Those that had the habit of masturbation before getting married enter into the marriage covenant with that very same habit. It does not somehow magically disappear. It only becomes something more shameful and better hidden, yet still practiced, and a potential marriage destroyer. How many married men and women are sharing their bed with more partners than they are aware of? 
5. There is also the lie that masturbation doesn’t hurt anyone. Wrong, it hurts you. Masturbation cuts off your communion and communication with God. You walk alone when you masturbate. You cannot serve two masters. You will either serve your flesh and give into its desires or serve the Spirit and follow what He desires.

6. Masturbation is dangerous in the fact that it is nothing less than training for an act that as a Christian, you profess to not want to do. If you do not have the self-control to say “no” to your flesh, what makes you think that if found in a potentially compromising situation, you would say “no”? Let me put it this way, after years of practice and training for a certain moment, what would you do if the very act that you have been fantasizing about suddenly presented itself to you? For instance, someone of the opposite sex coming on to you, taking off his or her clothes… What would you do? After having played out the scene so many times in your mind, I find it hard to believe that you would run. And that is the real danger. 

Just say “NO!”

1Co 10:13; But remember that the temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it.

Masturbation is dangerous and wrong. It compromises your position with God and sets you up to fall. God is raising up a holy and pure generation, one that is going to see and experience the power of God. But, do not be deceived. The same hand that only earlier in the day was giving some false sense of gratification to your flesh will not see miracles done through it. You cannot walk after the flesh one moment and with the Spirit the next. Choose your side and walk there. 

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Santarem-PA-Brazil (08/02/2003)4851087050113108714276100  11 2 31105981606000admin0 0.000000 000002421HANGING WITH THE DEVIL<img border="0" src="/images/princ23e.jpg" hspace="0" align="center">

Every week I receive e-mails from people wanting my opinion on secular music. “Can I listen to secular music?” “Does it matter to God?” “Is it a sin to listen to secular music?”

To respond to these three questions quickly, 1. Yes, you can listen to secular music. You can also throw yourself in front of an on-coming truck or go to hell if you so wish to. (There is more to life than “can or can’t”). 2. Yes, it does matter to God. 3. No, it is not a sin to listen to secular music. It also is not a sin to cross the street with your eyes closed. It just isn’t very smart.

I would first like to express my absolute distaste for “can I, can’t I” questions. I am not particularly fond of responding with “can or can’t” because of the possibility of creating an appearance of rules and running the risk of becoming or being labeled as religious. I find the attitude of wanting to create rules for everything, shallow and immature. There are plenty of things in the Christian life that cannot be simply put into a “can or can’t” box. There are things that you can do that are not particularly good for your Christian walk or do absolutely nothing for it, but at the same time, cannot be emphatically called sin.

For me, music is one of those things. Listening to secular music, in and of itself, will not send anyone to hell. But, it will also not cause anyone to have a more intimate relationship with Jesus. On the contrary, it could cause your spiritual life to become cold and distant. The question that I always have is this, “Why do the children of God want to listen to something that does not edify them or glorify God when we have christian music that does both of those things?”

"Or what fellowship is there between light and darkness?" (2Co 6:14)

I have read shallow articles written by even shallower people that have said that in order to improve their musical talent, given to them by God, they need to listen to secular music. Right. God gave you the talent, but the devil is going to help you improve it. That makes a lot of sense. About as much sense as a young girl watching a strip tease so she can pick up some new moves for her choreography team at church.

"Or what fellowship is there between light and darkness?" (2Co 6:14)

I even read an article by one guy who said that he doesn’t know of one pastor that doesn’t listen to secular music. OK. I know of at least one.

I realize that music was created be God and not the devil. But, that is not a good excuse to listen to secular music. My friend, sex was also created by God and not the devil. But, that does not justify me going out and renting a pornographic film. Understand? Obviously God created music and the devil has perverted some of it. So, for this reason, I will look for music in the form in which God created it and not the perversion. There is a huge difference.

If you fill your head with the lyrics from secular tunes, tell me that it will not have na effect on you. Sure it will. If you fill a cup full with orange juice, full of orange juice it will be. If you fill your mind with garbage from the world, full of garbage it will be. And this will have an effect on your relationship with Jesus. 

There is a story of a little boy that every day, after school, went to one of his classmates home to play. After about a month, his mother asked him:

“How is your friend?”
“What friend?”
“Your friend that you play with every day.”
“Oh, him. He’s not my friend.”
“But, you play with him everyday. How are you going to tell me that he is not your friend?”
“No. He’s not my friend. I just like his toys.”
“Let me try and understand this. You go to his house everyday to play with his toys, but you don’t like him?”
“Yeah, that’s right. But, you know, the more I’m with him, the more I’m starting to like him.”

And that is the risk in hanging out with the devil. Many of us spend a good amount of our time playing with the devil’s toys, yet we don’t consider him our friend. Do you think? Is it possible that we are starting to learn to tolerate him because we like his toys? I don’t know about you, but I don’t hang out with my enemies.

In order to know what a man’s priorities are, look to see where he spends his money. To know who a man’s friends are, look to see who he spends his time with.

"You adulterers! Don't you realize that friendship with this world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy this world, you can't be a friend of God. (James 4:4)

Reality is this: God is raising up a strong, anointed, and separate (set apart) generation. The strength comes from God. The anointing comes from God. But you have to decide to be separate from the world. You have to decide how far you want to go with Him. I can’t tell you that listening to secular music will destroy your spiritual life, but I can guarantee you that it will not help in the least bit.

"Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is." (Ro 12:2)

"Don't team up with those who are unbelievers. How can goodness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness?” (2Co 6:14)

Make a decision to hang out with purity and perfection, not with perversion. 
Choose to be a holy and separate from the world. Be radical in order to see radical things happen in and through your life. Hang out with God, not the devil.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
GB Team
Volta Redonda/RJ - Brazil (09/15/2003)3761087050231108714258100  11 2 31106361778000admin0 0.000000 000002821THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED<img border="1" src="/images/guitar_01.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">God the Father, wanting to be closer to his people but seeing the difficulty because of barriers set up by men, decided to have a meeting with the other two of the Trinity to discuss what ought to be done in order to resolve the situation.  After some time, they all agreed that Jesus had done Hs job in dying for humanity and that the Holy Spirit was doing his job in convicting men of their sins, so, this brought them to the obvious conclusion: the problem was with man.  It was the man that was not interested in being with God if there was a price to be paid.  It was the man that preferred to live with his sins of pleasure rather than deny himself and draw close to God.  The truth of the matter was that man had gotten to such a point that he didn’t even connect with the holiness of God anymore or even undersand what that meant.  So it was here that the Three discovered the problem.  Humanity no longer understood what God meant when He said, “Be holy because I am holy” or “Without holiness, no one will see the Lord.”  Men were thinking that they could enter into the presence of the Almighty God whenever and however they wanted and that He would be alright with that.  So, remembering the effect that the deaths of Ananias e Saphira had on the early church, God the father decided that for one day He would reinstitue the old rule that if anyone tried to enter into His presence with sin in their life, that they would die.

Well, the day arrived in which the Godhead had determined that any who who tried to go up on the stage with sin in their lives would die.  And as it would happen, a worship leader in an early morning service entered into the church building and headed for the stage to take his place in the front.  But, when he put his foot on the first step, a huge clap of thunder was heard and he fell dead.  And like that, began the day of judgment in the house of the Lord.  After him, one by one, the rest of the worship team went towards the stage and fell dead.  What happened in this church was not an isolated incident as reports were coming in from all over the world that entire worship teams were falling dead in the churches.  At this, the Christian world went into shock and the pastors began rebuking satan and all of his demons as they thought this to be an attack of the enemy, until a prophet of the Lord stood up and said, “For how long will you play games with Me, treating my holiness and the blood of My Son as common things?  For how long will you continue to raise up dirty hands and speak empty words?  Do you think that I do not see what you are doing?  Do you think that I turn my head when you can sin and that I and pay no attention?  I see what you do in secret and I hear the words that you speak to your lovers in the dark.  And for this, my anger burns against you.  I hate your falseness.  I hate your lies.  I hate your religious meetings and foolish parties.  For how long will you pretend to walk in holiness and ignore me?  Return to me.  Return to me in real repentance.  Clean your dirty hands.  Stop sinning.  Truly seek me.  For when you truly seek me and call out to me, I will hear you and turn my face towards you.  Return to me.  Return to me.”  And that was how it was on the day that the music died.  

Imagine if God really decided one day to kill all of the people on your worship team that have sin in their lives.  Do you think that many would survive?  I know a few that I would personally bet would survive and still play that day, but, very few.  I doubt that there are many that are going to want to argue with me about holiness on the worship teams these days.  My friends, have you ever stopped to wonder why we experience so little of God’s presence in our churches, so little of His Shekinah glory?  When was the last time that God showed up in your church and left everyone on their faces?   Because that’s exactly how it would be if God really showed up.  I’ve heard more times than I care to remember, worship leaders yelling, “Hallelujah!  God is here among us.” Yeah right.  I always have this desire in me at these moments to stand up on a chair and yell, “That’s a Lie!  He left about five minutes ago when you went up there.”  I mean, be real, how many of us really were feeling God’s presence at that moment when he decided to yell?  I know that God is omnipresent, or in other words, everywhere, all of the time.  But, that is not what he meant when he yelled those empty and religious words.  Not to say that he was intentionally trying to deceive people, but either way, it’s still a lie.

Which brings me to the cener of all of this.  Why are we not experiencing the presence of God, something that even an unbeliever will feel, in our services?  Think about it, if God decides to show up in a service, no one on the worship team will have to blame the people for not wanting to enter into God’s presence because they will be there, like it or not.  When God appeared at the mountain with Moses and shook the ground on which the people were standing, nobody could deny that God was there or say that they didn’t feel anything.  When God is present, no one needs to make an announcement.  Are you with me?  Now, returning to the question, “Why are we not experiencing the presence of God in our services, like that?  It’s simple, SIN!  There is so much sin on the worship teams these days that we either have to be blind or stupid not to realize it.  And with them up there on the stage calling for God to come down, is it any wonder that He doesn’t?  Do we honestly believe that He will? 

With sin in your life, there is no anointing.  And without the anointing, there is no presence of God.  For anointing is nothing more than the manifest presence and power of God in your life.  And with sin, there is no possibility.

All of us know people up on the stage, in front of the church, that have no business being up there because of sin in their lives.  But because they play or sing well, we turn our heads and make an exception.  How shameful.  We are more concerned with the sound in our churches than the anointing and presence of God.  Yeah, yeah, he plays well, but when he isn’t playing his guitar, he’s playing with his girlfriend’s breasts.  Think about it, If God were to kill everyone trying to go up on stage who was kissing, touching inappropriately, looking at pornography on the internet, checking out the opposite sex, masturbating, full of themselves because they are on the worship team (prideful) and the list goes on, how many would survive the judgment of God?  Honestly?  Not many.  And we want to know why are services are dry, boring and lacking the presence of God.  Because there is no presence of God in those who are calling for Him.

A lack of holiness on the stage results in a lack of the presence of God in the service.

The very worship leaders are an abomination in the eyes of God and He isn’t coming.  We can stop singing the songs about Him coming until we clean our hands and purify our hearts.  You know, nothing has changed since the old times.  God still requires holiness in order to enter into His presence.  And until we have people taking this seriously in their positions and ministries, nothing is going to happen.  We can spend our whole lives speaking of the coming revival, but, it won’t come. 

We are playing games with God and thinking that He doesn’t really notice or care about what we are doing in the days leading up to the church service.  We are wrong.  He cares and some are going to find out when it’s too late and they are trying to argue wih Jesus about all that they did in their church and in the ministry when all of the sudden He is going to interrupt them with these words, “Depart from me you doers of iniquity. I never knew you.”  Hard words?  Without a doubt.  Truthful?  With even less doubt.

If we want to see the Lord, we need to prepare ourselves.  Esther spent one year preparing herself for one night with the king.  What are we doing to prepare ourselves to be in the presence of the King of kings?

1 Pt 1:16; Be holy, for I am holy. 

Heb 12:14; Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord

Ps 15:1-3; Who may worship in your sanctuary, LORD?  Who may enter your presence on your holy hill?  Those who lead blameless lives
and do what is right, speaking the truth from sincere hearts.  Those who refuse to slander others or harm their neighbors or speak evil of their friends.

Ps 24:3-6; Who may climb the mountain of the LORD?  Who may stand in his holy place?  Only those whose hands and hearts are pure,
who do not worship idols and never tell lies.  They will receive the LORD's blessing and have right standing with God their savior.  They alone may enter God's presence and worship the God of Israel.

Lev 10:1-2; Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu put coals of fire in their incense burners and sprinkled incense over it. In this way, they disobeyed the LORD by burning before him a different kind of fire than he had commanded. 2So fire blazed forth from the LORD's presence and burned them up, and they died there before the LORD.

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ/Brazil3841098987888110371423800  11 2 31109898788800admin0 0.000000 000002721PORNO ON THE INTERNET: Real or Virtual Sin?<img border="1" src="/images/epist_porn2.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">[b]Hi!  My name is Carrie.  Welcome to my dorm room.  I’d really like to get to know you better.  Click here to enter.  I’m waiting.[/b]

I know what you’re thinking, “Hey man! What are you talking about?  This is a Christian site.” Yes, it is.  It is also our ministries’ site.  But, a while back, this was inadvertently appearing on our site.  I don’t know exactly what happened, an error with our server, the devil, who knows?  But, this I know, for two days, everyone who entered our site was met and affronted by Carrie and an invitation to enter into her room.  You can imagine my horror, shock and preoccupation.  To have this happen on our site scared me and forced me to face the reality of pornography on the Internet.  It is a real problem.  I just hope that no one was tempted to enter Carrie’s room because of our site.  Either way, the danger is real.

To look or not to look, that is the battle.  Where I grew up, there was a saying, “You can look, but you can’t touch.”  And, to the human rationale, this appears to be true and quite profound.  But, we cannot measure things by the human rationale, as it is very limited and subjective. 

Jesus in Matthew 5:28 said, “Anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”  Jesus took the sin of adultery one step further in that he declared that it was more than just a physical act, but also a matter of the heart and that just looking and entertaining impure thoughts was the same as having actually committed the act.  It is an issue of the heart.  And that is what Jesus is concerned with, our hearts.

In a time not too long ago, this issue was a fight that took place outside of the home, on the street, at school, in the workplace, but, thanks to technology, principally the computer, it is much easier for you to sin with your eyes and in your thoughts.  And to think, you don’t even have to leave your home.  Right there in the privacy of your own home, you can look at naked men and women.   So, you tell me, do you really think that it is “OK” just looking and not touching?  Obviously you cannot touch as it is only an image on your computer screen and not real.  But, how many people after “only looking” have been led to fantasize about what or whom they have seen and ended up touching themselves (masturbating)?  I would dare to say that the percentage is quite high.  And that is the danger of looking.  To “see” is not a sin.  Everyday we see things that we don’t need to or even want to without bad intentions.  It is at this point though, that we need to turn our heads and go our way.   The sin is when we intentionally look for or look again and then that very image ends up being recorded in our minds only to bear bad fruit later in the way of fantasizing and masturbating.  My fear is that there are numbers of individuals who are bound and trapped in this oh so subtle sin.  This sin that so easily can be hidden yet is painfully embarrassing to admit; leaving the individual stuck in a prison built by him and as a result living a fruitless life full of shame and condemnation.  

Worse yet, what will happen with the person who for so long has fantasized about a certain situation if he is confronted by the real deal?  Or in other words, what if the scene that he has played out so many times in his mind actually starts happening in front of him?  What will he do?  After having “trained” for so long, do you honestly think that he will find the strength to resist the temptation or better yet, run?  I doubt it.  And therein lies the danger.

Legality is given to the devil the moment that you begin looking.  Little sins left to themselves without correction or repentance always lead to bigger ones.  He who has not trained himself for the fights in the neighborhood will not find the necessary strength to say “no” in the middle of the war.  Just a crack in the door (and that is all the devil is looking for) will soon become a door wide open.  

Radical?  You bet.  But, being radical in this area is the only way to guarantee a victory.  And while we are here, allow me to state that God is not looking for weak or wimpy Christians to use to win this world.  He is looking for radical Christians, committed, sanctified and holy.  He is looking for a generation of youth that are going to walk in holiness and in an anointing that is going to impact the world.  You are that generation!  Start walking in holiness and start putting to use the anointing that God had given you, an anointing to win the lost, to heal the sick, to raise the dead.  Holiness is a decision.  It is your decision.  It is a choice between spiritual life and death, sitting on the bench or getting into the game, being used by God or being left behind.  God wants to use you and will to the point that you are willing to surrender to Him. 

Be careful while you are on the Internet.  The devil fights dirty and he will try to get you any way possible.  Don’t allow him even a crack in the door.  And the next time that Carrie invites you into her room, “delete” her.  [/b]

[b]Matthew 5:28 – But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart.[/b]

[b]2 Timothy 2:22 - Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust.  Follow anything that makes you want to do right.  Pursue faith and love and peace, and enjoy the companionship of those that call on the Lord with pure hearts.[/b]

[b]Philippians 2:15-16 – You are to live clean, innocent lives as children of God in a dark world full of crooked and perverse people.  Let your lives shine brightly before them. [/b]

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ/Brazil4331091114170110371422100  11 2 31109111417000admin0 0.000000 000002921TIME TO CELEBRATE?<img border="1" src="/images/war_01.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">One of the things that I have been thinking about and meditating on for quite some time is this idea “celebration”, celebration services, and party, party, party, this new atmosphere that we find in the church today.  Not that I am against this, but, it appears to have become the latest fad, trying to create a festive climate in the church, in our services, in our lives and even creating songs dedicated to this.  This is something that worries me.  Really, think about it, where in the Bible is it written that THIS is the time to celebrate?  In all that I read in my Bible, there seems to be one resounding theme: WAR!  Fight against your flesh.  Fight the good fight… but celebrate?

Matthew 11:12; From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been suffering violence, and the violent have been seizing it by force. 

Philippians 1:27; But whatever happens to me, you must live in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ, as citizens of heaven. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing side by side, fighting together for the Good News. Don't be intimidated by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself.  For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.  We are in this fight together. You have seen me suffer for him in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of this great struggle.

Colossians 2:23; These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, humility, and severe bodily discipline. But they have no effect when it comes to conquering a person's evil thoughts and desires.

1 Thessalonians 2:2; On the contrary, after we had previously suffered and been outrageously treated in Philippi, as you know, we were emboldened by our God to speak the gospel of God to you in spite of great opposition. 

2 Timothy 4:7; I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 

Ephesians 6:12; For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. 

2 Timothy 2:4; And as Christ's soldier, do not let yourself become tied up in the affairs of this life, for then you cannot satisfy the one who has enlisted you in his army. 

The Bible, from its initial pages, was written in the midst of war and battles.  Not to say that there weren’t parties and celebrations, but this was never the central theme, like it is fast becoming today.  Where in the world did we find this soft egotistical gospel that is caught up in this festive climate and worried about how and when the next “party” is going to happen.  In the New Testament, after the gospels, there are only two times that “celebrations” are mentioned, and neither is promoted.  Do you think that maybe there is a reason for this?  Many times, silence speaks louder than words.  And in this case I think it speaks plenty loud enough for us to understand.  What an incredibly huge deception the army of the Lord has fallen victim to…

Time to celebrate?  NO!!!  It’s a time for war.  It’s time for the people of God to stop jumping around in their churches and screaming like a bunch of nine year old little girls at a slumber party, as though they have no worries in life because they are already saved.  Woooo-Hooooo!  Partyyyy!!!  What a sad picture!  We are so full of ourselves today that we are able to close the doors of our churches and celebrate while the world outside is going to hell.  While the devil is having a grand time destroying the lives of the lost, we are tucked away safely in our churches with our mouths full of cake and jumping around like a bunch of ridiculous little rabbits (no offense meant to the rabbits).  

Do you suppose that this is what we were created for?  Was it for this that we are called?  Is it for this that we are saved?  I cry from the rooftops: NO!!!  We were created to fight, to ransack hell, to rescue our friends and family from the pit.  How is it that we can live so happy and content while people that we know are on their way to hell?  Do you suppose that we truly understand the purpose of the cross?  Do we really believe that hell exists and that people are really going to be condemned to there for eternity?  Looking at the way that we live and work for our own benefit and happiness…no.  No, we don’t believe that people will go to hell… or worse, we don’t care.

The time has come for us to take the forks out of our hands and replace them with swords.  It’s time to stop playing games.  This deal is serious.  We are in a war.  Don’t let the sissy songs of parties and celebrations fool you.  This is not the time to celebrate or party, it’s time to fight.  There is a war going on, one that includes blood and death.  We have to fight to win.  We have to fight to survive.  The worst place to be during a war is not in it.  Just ask David.  During a time of war, he found himself at home in his palace and what happened as a result basically ruined his life.  The time has come for the army of God to stand up and be counted.  It is time to recognize who you are and act!  This is not the time to celebrate.  It’s time to fight!   

There is a scene that I love in the movie “Braveheart” when William Wallace’s men are on the battle line, preparing to confront the enemy in front of them.  The men lift their hands and swords and give a battle cry that makes the hair on the back of your next stand up, the yell of somebody crazy and determined.  Imagine us, as the army of the Lord, lifting up our hands and swords, giving a yell and running for the battle instead of acting as if there is no battle happening or someone trying to kill us, while we merrily “celebrate.”  

Let me end with this thought, Jesus spoke of a celebration, a feast that was going to happen at the end, the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.  But, I find no justification or reason for us to be doing this now as though we have already won the war, other than ignorance or foolishness.  The celebration is coming, but this is not the time.  Put down your fork and grab your sword.  The time has come to fight.  The lost outside are waiting for our parties to end and for us to start fighting.  Jesus is waiting for us out on the battlefield where He always is.  Will you go?  It’s time to fight!
AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ/Brazil3681103713305110858646800  11 2 31110371330500admin0 0.000000 000003021THE MYTH OF HELL<img border="1" src="/images/inf.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">Hell, the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, all things variably spoken of, some even with conviction, but all things that after a certain age, no one really believes in.  Not that I want to make a comparison between the three as if they were equal for in reality, Santa Claus receives far more attention than the other two.  But, he has nothing to do with the Christian faith and thus holds very little interest for me.  One though, does have a lot to do with the Christian faith, hell.   For if hell doesn’t really exist, then Jesus didn’t need to come and there is really no need to worry about eternity.  Imagine if all of this talk about some place hot and full of suffering is nothing more than an empty threat coming from frustrated pastors in some vain attempt to get people, in some form, to act in a desired manner.  Imagine if hell is really only a creation of the church and not real after all.  Could it be?  And if hell is only a myth, where does that leave us?

Are we to truly believe that the church of today actually believes in hell?  I know that everyone says that there is a hell where Hitler and all of the bad people go, but, do you suppose that we really, truly believe that there exists a place where people will go and suffer for eternity?  Before you mindlessly utter a “yes”, I would like for you to consider a few things with me.  I would like to set before you two reasons as to why I do not believe that we, as Christians today, believe in hell thereby relegating it to the status of myth, nothing more than some fairy that comes and steals teeth.

1. How many of us know people, be it in our family, school, work or just neighborhood that are going to hell?  And how many of these have we yet to “find” time or the right “opportunity” to speak to them of the death of Jesus on the cross and the impending judgment of hell for those that are not found in Him?  Is it possible for one to truly believe that hell exists and know someone who is going there yet not warn him?  Have we truly found a way to be so cold and senseless that we can watch someone step out into the street in front of a car without screaming, “Look out!”?  For me personally, I find it incredibly absurd if not down right insane to know that someone could die at any moment and go to hell all the while why we, “Christians”, sit off on the side watching the whole scene play out as though God might somehow repent of having created hell and in the end let the offender (sinner) enter into heaven; all of this after having spent a lifetime spitting in the face of God.  Based on the fact that so few are actually evangelizing the lost and the fact that many find it easier to stay quiet than to risk being ridiculed (the truth being that we are more worried about our reputation that the eternity of the other person), I have been forced to come to the conclusion that we do not really believe in hell.  For, if we believe, how can we stay silent?”

2. But, I spoke of two reasons, for not just the lack of evangelism, but also looking at the lives of “Christians” today has confirmed to me that my conclusion, based on no one really caring about the lost going to hell, was right.  No one believes in hell.  Now, let me speak.  Maybe you do believe that “sinners” will go to hell, but what about those that continue to sin after “knowing” Jesus?  If we believe that sinners will go to hell, we have to also believe that there will be people who will present themselves to Jesus one day who will find less than a loving embrace. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”  My friend, if we stop to analyze these verse, we must come to few conclusions:  1) The people who are speaking to Jesus are from the church and think that they are okay with Jesus based on religious acts that they had done and 2) Jesus did not know them, there was no relationship there and 3) They were sinning in their lives (evildoers or as the KJV puts it, workers of iniquity, sin).  The incredibly amazing thing in the church today is how we have found a way to ignore or make excuses for sin, something that we shouldn’t do and dare not risk.  Jesus is returning for a pure and spotless bride, not a prostitute.

In today’s world, one of the biggest challenges that we have is trying to discern who is on our team and who is not.  Sadly, based on the way that lives are lived; there is not a huge difference between those who are “saved” and those who are “lost”.  Everyone is dating (and we all know what goes on in a dating relationship), having sex outside of marriage, wasting time watching the devil’s butt (TV) when they could be seeking God’s face, lying, stealing and the list goes on.  If we were to find ourselves in a court of law and before a judge, I think that many of us would have a hard time proving that we are really Christians. The whole thing is out of control.  What happened to the days in which we could speak of walking in holiness without shame or fear of being ridiculed and called an “extremist” or “radical”.   1 Peter 1:14-16; As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”  My friend, holiness in and of itself is “radical”.  It is an “extreme” concept.  God is holy! God is “radical”!  If you doubt it, read your Bible.  There is no such thing as “pretty holy” or “almost holy”.  You are or you are not.  And if you are not, what is your assurance that you will not be found among those receiving the awful news that all that you have done was done in vain because you are OUT!  He doesn’t know you.  But really, you should have already known because you really haven’t changed that much, other than where you hang out and where you go on Sundays.  But, deep down inside, sometimes not so deep, the sin and the practice of it stayed, compromising who you were and whom you thought you should be.  What a great deception.  What danger.  So, where do you find yourself today?  Compromised?  Living in sin?  Be careful, this isn’t a game.  

Lack of evangelism, lack of holiness or lack of those truly seeking holiness in their lives, what is one left to think?  And for this I state that I do not believe that a large majority of those who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ believe that hell is a real place and there is a real possibility that they could end up there.  They are betting foolishly on an old grandpa type God, full of love and mercy, that in no way could possibly send them to hell, forgetting the fact that it was His Son massacred on the cross in order that “believers” could play church and go on sinning, stepping on His blood as though it were something common and worthless and betraying Him with every sinful act.  Do not be caught sleeping on this point.  That violent and angry God who had no patience for sin in the Old Testament is the same yesterday, today and forever more.  Don’t deceive yourself into thinking that He doesn’t see all or that it really doesn’t matter what you do based on your conclusion that until now you have not suffered any grave consequences.  It will always be that way.  One day He will once again give full vent to His holy anger and punish all sin.  Do not, I repeat, do not play around with this. “It is a terrible thing to find yourself in the hands of an angry God.”

If we truly believe that hell is real, there will be two evidences of it in our lives:

1. We will not be able to keep our mouths shut regarding Jesus, salvation and hell.  There will be such desperation in us regarding those who are about to be consumed that we will have to tell them.

2. We will change our lives.  We will be concerned with the sins that are running loose, and many times unchecked, in our lives.  God has no covenant with sin, so if you find yourself living in sin, what is your assurance that he has a covenant with you?  Not to say that our “holiness” saves us, but it is certainly proof of our salvation, the proof of a changed life and desires.

Mt 7:21-23; [b]Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ [/b]

Mt 10:28; [b]Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.[/b]

2 Pe 2:4; [b]For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment;[/b]

Rev 20:14-15; [b]Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.[/b]

Rev 21:8; [b]But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars–their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.[/b]

Mk 9:43-44; [b]If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.[/b]

Mt 25:41; [b]Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.[/b]

Mt 25:46; [b]Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.[/b]

Lk 13:27-28; [b]But he will reply, ‘I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out.[/b]

Hell is not a myth.  It is real and people will go there.  It is up to us to make sure that no one ends up there without at least having been advised and at given an option.  And let us make sure, each and every one of us, that we too do not end up going there.  God bless you!

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ/Brazil12751108570547111771614600  11 2 31110857054700admin0 0.000000 000003121Rape - The Latest Fad in Sex<img border="1" src="/images/estupro_dentro.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">Christina was a girl like many others, pretty, timid and with a smile that could break any heart.  But she was only interested in the heart of one particular person, Phillip. He was the sweetest guy she had ever known in her life.  He encouraged her, made her laugh and apparently understood when things weren’t going so well at home, especially after one more of those infamous fights with her mother.  She wanted to spend every waking moment with him.  And fortunately, they were from the same church giving her one more reason to never miss a service and one more place that she could be with him.

They started slow in their relationship, getting a Coke every now and then and chatting on the phone.  But, since the early days, things had progressed.  They had started holding hands and kissing.  Nothing that could be considered too wrong, other than the times when things got a little hot and they went a little further than they should have.  Christina was still a virgin and planned to remain that way until she got married.  And those moments in which they went too far and Phillip put his hands where he shouldn’t have left her feeling uncomfortable and nervous.  This was certainly not what she wanted.  After growing up in the church and hearing numerous messages about purity and waiting for your husband, she knew that this was wrong, but what could she do? Apparently Phillip liked hugging and kissing her and didn’t seem to be too bothered by his own actions.  She really liked him and didn’t want to upset him or make him angry, so when possible, she tried to avoid those situations.  Yet, there were still those moments when she couldn’t escape and she felt trapped, so she let it happen while trying to control the moment.  Until one Sunday when Phillip’s parents were traveling and he invited Christina to come over and watch a movie with him; she didn’t find it strange or uncomfortable as she had already watched plenty of movies with him, and after six months of dating, there wasn’t too much that her left her feeling uneasy.  

Christina arrived a little early that day, anxious to see Phillip.  Oh how he made her heart jump.  After a glass of juice, they went to the living room to watch the movie.  They sat on the couch and Phillip put his arm around her and pulled her close.  She loved to feel his arms, large and strong, especially in comparison to hers.  She felt so secure in those arms, as if nothing in the world could hurt her.  The movie was good, but obviously, Phillip had other plans as he began kissing her.  She returned his kisses as they were already accustomed to doing this and to be honest, she liked it.   There was just something about feeling wanted and desired that brought her a certain amount of satisfaction.  But, Phillip wanted more and started to put his hands in places that he shouldn’t have and making her touch him as well.  Initially she resisted, asking him to stop, telling him that she didn’t like it and didn’t want to do this, but Phillip wasn’t listening and he continued even more forcefully leaving her not knowing what to do yet understanding that she in her own strength could never hold him off.  Hoping that he would get tired of this strange game, she closed her eyes and pretended to be somewhere else, anywhere else, just not there.  What happened next, she never expected, Phillip started to take her clothes off and he could have cared less how many times she begged him to stop and not do this, he just kept on going while saying something about loving her and not being able to control himself any longer. And right there, on his parent’s couch in the living room, Phillip raped Christina.  

This story is not true in the sense that it involved real persons called Phillip and Christina, but it is very real in the world of dating (56% of all rapes happen in a dating relationship).  One on the biggest problems in dealing with this situation is that many are apprehensive to call it rape because it happened between a boyfriend and a girlfriend, and thus leaving the girl not knowing what to think or do.  She never expected this, yet, it happened.  Now what is she going to do?  Tell someone if she dares?  Will people believe her or blame her?  And maybe she is a little to blame for having let things go so far without having stopped them (as if she could have)… 

The first thing that I want to make real clear is that someone raped or abused in any manner, physically or sexually, never is to blame.  Even a girl leading a guy on and letting him get right to the edge, (which she shouldn’t have done, but that is neither here nor there), the moment that she says “no”, that she doesn’t want to do this and asks him to stop, the game is over.  No “injury time”, no “overtime” and certainly no “follow through”.  The buzzer already sounded.  Anything beyond this moment is considered a violation of the person.  It doesn’t matter if it’s a boyfriend, an uncle, a friend, parent, etc.  Nobody has the right to put their hands on your body without your permission and without first marrying you.  Many times, the violator tries to blame the victim, but this is nothing more than a cruel, cowardly and stupid lie.  The one who did the violating is always to blame, not to mention a criminal.  It is one thing to give something away and in a sense lose it and quite another to have something taken from you.  This is what we refer to as stealing and in the case of sex, rape. 

Rape, as generally thought of, is sex as result of physical force, but, rape can also involve manipulation or force other than physical be it emotional or mental.  This is the tactic that is most common between individuals that know each other, especially in dating relationships.  Emotional tactics might include threatening to “break up with you” or to “go find someone else who will”; calling you names, telling you “If you really loved me you would”; or that “It’s your fault.  You’re the one who brought this on” (especially when the climate gets a little hot), “I know what you want” or threats to your reputation, threatening to tell others that you “did” even if you didn’t.

Rape involving a dating couple is a complicated situation in that the majority of the victims don’t know what to think or if they can even call it rape because they know the person well and are already involved with them.  Generally a traumatic moment like this is put on a shelf called “mistake” and the violated person is left to live with the weight of it and more than likely will carry a feeling of guilt and emotional damage for the rest of their life.

My friend, sadly, this is more than an “exception” or “out of the norm” in our churches.  To know the actual number of youth that have been touched in a way that they should not have been or been forced into a sexual act (vaginal, oral or anal) would scare us.  Yet, our difficulty in accepting the facts does in no way remove the fact that this is happening (56%).  We need to open our eyes and quit playing the part of the blind man on the corner and see the damage that dating is causing our youth and call this sin for what it is, “RAPE!”  This is one fad that those who count themselves as children of God should have no part of.  Sex is for marriage and those two individuals therein freely giving themselves one to another.

God bless you!

[b]Pr. Jeff Fromholz[/b]
Volta Redonda/RJ - Brazil4361117715448112717148900  11 2 31111771544800admin0 0.000000 000003221I Want Revival[b]I Want Revival![/b]

<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/pinocchionose.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">Just speak these words and you can prepare yourself for the tremor that will follow as every Christian within earshot shouts an ”amen” so loud that it’s almost believable. But, with this, I have to ask, “Do you really think that we want revival, or is this just the fad of the hour, to speak of revival, to pretend that it might really be happening in some remote corner of the earth? Or is it maybe just something to excite the masses?” I have nothing against revival; on the contrary, I am totally in favor of it and pray for it everyday. But, sincerely, I doubt the sincerity of the “amen’s” that echo in the church today.

These days there are so many beautiful songs and eloquent sermons dealing with this subject and in such a way that we end up believing that we already have it, or in the least that it is something guaranteed.  Even the prophets of today are speaking of this end time revival. So, I guess we can relax then, huh?  Of course everyone one says “no”, but, while your butt is asleep as a result of so much time sitting on it, let me interject something. Most of us want revival if it comes for free, or at the most in a five and dime store. But, if it means that I may have to miss some of my beauty sleep or a couple of meals, you can count me out. It’s amazing how we can almost convince anyone of our sincerity and desire for revival until the point that we have to prove it through our actions. It’s at this point that we find ourselves with empty handed and with tired tongues.

If we truly want revival, let’s do something in order to see it happen. Let’s pray, let’s weep, let’s beg, let’s fast (sorry for the curse word). If you want to really bother the church today, start to speak about fasting and show them that fasting is a normal part of the Christian life and not an option. In Matthew 6:16-17, Jesus says, “When you fast”, not “if you fast”. Seems easy enough to understand doesn’t it? Jesus expects us to fast. And when we start to speak of fasting, I am not referring to the space of time between dinner and breakfast.  I am speaking of 7 days, 14 days, 21 days, 30 days, or even 40 days (aaahhhh, I’ll die!) without eating, just liquid. Sure it’s radical. But, how perhaps do you think that revival is going to come? During one more church party full of an exceeding amount of food while others in our city are going hungry, (but that’s another subject). My friend, we have to stop bowing our knees to the god of our stomachs. Sincerely, it’s shocking to see how much we are in submission to our stomachs. Try to skip a few meals and see if yours doesn’t start to cry out with threats of impending death. Or wait until the hour to eat and see how people react when the food isn’t ready. “I’m hungry!  Where’s the food?!?” “I’m starving” “I’m dying of hunger!” (If only)  

“I said bow fool!”

We live crying out, “Where’s revival?  Where’s the revival that all of the preachers are speaking about?  Where’s the revival that we have been waiting for?”  All good questions as the majority of us are tired of hearing these empty words about some revival that doesn’t exist and apparently is not coming.  So, where’s the revival?  If you listen carefully enough you can hear a voice coming down from above, a response, “You ate it.”  

But, to just go hungry will not change anything.  We need to pray, really pray, crying out and imploring.  When was the last time that you spent the night on your knees weeping in God’s presence begging for His mercy in relation to the sins of our nation and crying out for revival? That’s exactly my point.  And you still want to know why we don’t see revival? The ball is on side of the court. It’s with us. God did His part. Now we have to do ours. If we want it, let’s go after it.  Let’s stop shouting out the right responses to mundane questions if we are not willing to pay the price and make this dream become a reality.  

Let’s stop speaking so much about revival, as though this were some way to obligate God to stand up and do something. Nothing moves God more than one of His children on their knees crying out to Him. John Wesley said, “If you want to see revival fire in the world, set yourself on fire and let them see you burn.”  My friend, God is waiting for you to move and to see what burns in your heart.  We need to stop saying things just because everyone says them and responding just because we know the right answer, becoming just one more wood face running the risk of seeing his nose grow. Let your actions demonstrate the sincerity of your heart. Let your actions speak louder than your words. The world doesn’t need words or more sermons they need revival. They need to experience a real God.

Revival waits for us. Let’s go after it.

[b]Pr Jeff[/b]
Team GB3371127171467113086380600  11 2 31112717146700admin0 0.000000 000003321Take Off Your Mask[b]Take off your Mask.[/b]

<img border="1" src="http://www.generationbenjamin.com/images/mascara_dentro.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">“I am a sinner.” “I have sin in my life.” “I am constantly being tempted.” All phrases that you rarely hear, if ever, coming out of the mouth of a Christian these days and even less likely if it is someone with a title. After all, this would be in reference to a weakness or error (God help us!). What is more likely to be heard is one of a number of lies, “I don’t have any sin in my life, thank God” or some clever little phrase like, “I am not a sinner fighting to be holy, I am a saint fighting against sin”, which is really nothing more than a word game. Try this one with your wife if you are married, “I am not an adulterer fighting to be faithful, I am a faithful husband fighting against adultery” while you are going out with other women. If you are sinning, you are a sinner. What is so hard to understand about that? Please help me here. The guy who cheats on his wife is an adulterer and the person who sins is a sinner. It really doesn’t matter what color you paint your poop, it is still poop.

Obviously, I am not arguing against the spiritual position that we attain in being forgiven and seated in heavenly places et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. So, please do not send me e-mails wanting to argue your position before God as a result of the shed blood of Jesus (I already know and I won’t read them). I am speaking of your life being lived out. Who you really are, what you do and how you live. You can say what you want, but my Bible says that anyone who lives in the practice of sin or continues sinning isn’t even saved (1 John 3:6), regardless of carefully thought out claims. Now, we have to approach this from an intelligent and carefully thought out position. Firstly, whoever continues in sin after “getting saved,” a word of caution, “Be careful. Maybe you are not who, or what, you think you are.” And at the same, we need to admit that everyone blows it sometimes and sins, be it in attitude, words or action. And whoever says that this isn’t so, my Bible also says that you are a liar and that the truth is not in you (1 John 1:8). Yet, there is a huge difference between who messes up and who lives sinning; one is constant, a habit, the other is not. That said; let us finally get on to the subject of the hour.

Some time ago, the church started upon this strange way of addressing sin without addressing it, and that is assuming that it is even being addressed. It became unpopular, even anti love to call sin, sin and a sinner for what he was. So we have tried to hide the ugly fact that all of us are sinners because this “accusation” is offensive. So now we are “those who have erred and wandered off the path,” but not sinners, and please do not mention hell (ooooohhh). Yet in the midst of this ridiculousness, the word is still sin and the individual is still a sinner (Forgive me for the offense). In a very subtle way this pseudo-psychiatry has in filtered our churches and we now worry more about the feelings of one of the “brothers” who is “feeling up” his girlfriend (or courting partner) and perhaps offending him than telling him that he is in sin and possibly saving him from an eternity in hell. So we end up kindly telling him that what is going on is not God’s best for him (or her), once again assuming that we say anything. My friend, who cares if someone in sin gets offended when confronted with the truth? My life would have been a whole lot different if the men in my church weren’t a bunch of wimps afraid to confront me. When I was younger, I needed someone with enough courage to approach me in love and say, “Dude, you’re in sin and God is going to one day treat you in a less than desirable way if you don’t cut it out.” Unfortunately, that man never appeared and I paid for it. Now we ask, “Where are the real men today?” I’ll tell you, hiding behind masks and ridiculous phrases trying to pretend to be something that they are not, all the while trying to please men and pretending that they too are something that they are not and thus forgetting about God. And this has taken us to this very sad and regrettable place in the history of the church that we now find ourselves; a weak church full of empty words and liars. And I am the first to admit that I too am a part of this great deception. I am a liar. I say that everything is all right when it isn’t. I fake a smile to hide my pain. I say nice things in order to please people when I really should be honest and risk offending them with the truth which they need more than some cutesy phrase that will go nowhere in helping them in their situation. 

My friend, we need to stop playing this very serious game. The time has come for us to take off our masks, to admit to who we are without a fear of being crucified by the Pharisees amongst us doing nothing more than living the same lie that we are. Enough of the falseness and hypocrisy. It’s not helping anyone. I don’t know about you, but I am tired of pretending to be something that I am not. I am not perfect. I am not holy (you can keep breathing). I have constant battles in my life, some of which I lose and end up sinning. So what??? That is the hour in which I cry out to God and ask Him to forgive me and His grace and forgiveness come (not being an excuse to sin). The truth is that I am a repentant and forgiven sinner. That’s it. And this is the point that we as the church have to get to. The Barbie world does not exist. It’s an illusion. Nobody is perfect. Imagine a church where you could go and be honest, transparent, with the others about who you are and without fear of the hypocritical eye that says, “Oh my God!” We have got to get out of this hole that we are stuck in. What the church needs more than ever is honesty and transparency. It’s time to take off the masks. Take off the masks and deal with who we are, allowing the others to also see and know us as we are. The reality is that until you admit who you really are, you will never change. You will continue living the same lie and false life of holiness that you already are afraid that someday, someone will find you out for the fake that you are. God didn’t call anyone to be a liar, yet the church today is full of more liars than anywhere else on the planet. And the worst of it is that we don’t have to go any further than a mirror to know that this is true. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Recently I was taken aside at a conference and gently rebuked for having said that “In the eyes of God, your sin is crap.” The problem was not that the phrase was wrong, but that I had used the word “crap” (which is in the dictionary) in the pulpit. “For, “this is not pulpit language,” wanting to say what? That we are fakes and posers? This “word” is a word that I have heard out of the mouths of more Christians than I can count, not excluding pastors in their own homes. So, if this isn’t something that should be said in the pulpit, it also is something that shouldn’t be said out of it. Did you know that there are two different languages being practiced in the life of a Christian? There is the one outside of the church that says, “crap,” “hell” and a whole lot worse things and there is the one that operates in the church, “Praise the Lord,” “Hallelujah!” It’s the same thing as a teenage girl who when she goes out with her friends dresses like a prostitute but when she goes to church looks like a Puritan. It’s hypocrisy! Do you want to know why the world doesn’t want anything to do with the church? Because they have been blinded by the smoke of our hypocrisy and falseness and cannot see Jesus in us. This has got to change. We have got to stop where we are. If the world sees us as liars, how does God see us? As faithful children fighting against (and living in) betrayal? 

“The truth will set you free.” At this I will admit that I have spent the better part of my life in the church trying to be holy, hiding any defect in my life (like a used car salesman) and pretending to be something that I was not. Until I woke up and saw that my life, full of lies and smoke screens, was not helping anyone and worse, was actually ruining me and forfeiting any hope of spiritual growth. At that point I decided, enough is enough, I really don’t care what anyone thinks of me. I have to deal the thoughts and opinions of only One Person. And I couldn’t truly help anyone as long as I was living a lie. Until I admitted that I had gone through the desert, I had no way of leading someone else out of it. The church doesn’t need perfect leaders to lead it. What it needs is men made of flesh and bones that bleed when they are cut; men that mess up sometimes and fall, yet that lift themselves up to continue on in order to tell others who have fallen how to get up and keep going.

The church needs to see that it is not alone in its fight against sin. You need to see that you are not alone in your struggle for holiness and that you are not the only one with “that” sin in your life. Let me reassure you that you are not alone. The rest of us are still lying and hiding, struggling with the same fear that you have to remove your mask. It’s time to take off the masks. The truth in your world starts with you. You need to make a point of being honest and transparent with others. Your church, your friends and the world need desperately the freedom that one honest and courageous person not afraid of “being found out” can bring. The healing of many people will come as a result of your transparent life full of errors and good tries at being holy.

Take off your mask, we want to see you.
Take off your mask, we need to see you.

[b]Pr Jeff[/b]
Team GB3021130863913113820450800  11 2 31113086391300admin0 0.000000 000003421Backsliding: The Crisis of the Modern Day Church<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/penguim.jpg" hspace="5" align="left"><b>Backsliding 
The Crisis of the Modern Day Church</b>

It seems that today everyone in the church is upset at something, someone or just generally bummed out; and unfortunately, many of these are quitting.  And try though I might, this is something that I am having a hard time grasping.  Don’t get me wrong, there are times that I think about quitting, throwing in the towel and living my life my way, but every time, it seems that there is something (or Someone) that doesn’t let me do it.  Yet still, many are and this has been bothering me lot these days.  I can’t even count all of my friends that through the years have left Jesus and returned to the world. I grew up in the church, so let it be understood that the number is rather significant.  And for me, there is nothing more disturbing and sad than to watch someone who has had an “experience” with Jesus turn his back on God and go back to the world.  And at the frequent rate that it is happening today we must ask the question, “Why?”  Why are so many people leaving their faith in order to walk a road that they know will result in an eternity in hell?  It makes absolutely no sense, or does it?

I think that I have, after quite a bit of internal probing and asking God, discovered the answer to the question “Why?” It is really quite simple, so that should do away with any false claims to genius that I might have.  It is because people are being “won to Jesus” with false expectations, wrong expectations and many times deceitful ideas of what the Christian life is and how it is going to be.  For example, how many people come to God because their life is in the toilet and someone is about to push the flush button?  Tons of people go to Jesus thinking that He is some type of spiritual mechanic, that He will fix all of their problems; rotten marriage, unemployment, depression, life, etc.  Not that He can’t or won’t, but my friend, the only right reason for someone to give their life to Jesus is because he recognizes his situation before an all-holy God as a sinner deserving of hell and desperately needing to be forgiven of his sins, something that is offered to us through Jesus Christ as a result His sacrificial death on the cross.  This is the only valid reason.  The rest are results of people looking for temporal solutions to temporal problems occurring in a temporal life.  It has nothing to do with the eternal and the eternal solution that is offered to us.  Jesus is not one with whom we can negotiate, “Jesus, I’ll give you my life, but you’ve got to fix a few things.” It doesn’t work like that.  Jesus didn’t die on a cross so that you could get a better job.  It was because of your sins!  And in the midst of this, I have a very real fear that the majority of these that convert for the wrong reasons don’t end up sticking around very long and sadly become one more statistic in the dying church.

What we have here is a problem, a general problem, and thus being so, we can generalize and say that is everywhere.  So, where do we start, or better yet, where does the problem have its origin?  The “problem” quite obviously starts with those who are “winning souls”.  Today we have many desperate pastors who are promising things that the Bible doesn’t offer in return for a “commitment to Jesus”.  I don’t know how many times I have heard someone in a pulpit say, “If you want peace, love and happiness, give your life to Jesus” or something of that sort.  Now, I beg to differ with that outlandish statement and false promise.  Or better yet, I would like to scream, “WHAT?” My friend, since my conversion my life has become a battlefield.  Since the hour that I declared my allegiance to Jesus Christ, all of hell and its contents were unleashed on me.  And the devil has worked overtime to try and ruin my “peace”.  Sure, there exists a peace in my heart, but my life is an all out war.  And happiness, could you give me a Bible verse to support that one?  What doesn’t anyone evangelizing tell the truth?  “If you want a life full of tribulation, temptations and an enemy who will try to kill you, come to Jesus.”  This would be the truth.  Not that life with Jesus is bad.  On the contrary, it is marvelous and the fact that you have someone by you side as you deal with the challenges of life is great.  Life in this world is already bad enough with all of its deceptions and let downs, but without Jesus, you are alone as you struggle to survive one more day with an eternity of hell awaiting you in the end.  It is a little more than obvious which side is better.  But, what happens is that many “accept Jesus into their hearts” with a wrong expectation of an easier life given to them by the modern day used-car salesmen selling Jesus and salvation at “rock bottom prices”.  We need to stop with these “salvation promotions”, selling Jesus so cheap that even the demons could get in on the deal “if they act fast”.  

“Getting saved” is easy as it depends on the act of another, but to be a real genuine Christian and maintain a Christian walk that God approves of is difficult.  The truth is that it’s work and there is a price to be paid by us.  For those that think that some little prayer is the beginning and the end of the deal and that their life doesn’t need to change, my friend, you are in a very perilous situation.  There is no way that you can say you are with Jesus without abandoning your sins, without changing your life. But this is what we have basically sold to the unbeliever, “God loves just as you are. Come.”  True.  But afterwards, he is going to ask (require) that you change.  Show me a “Christian” that is still living in his sins with no concern as to the necessity of change and I will show you one deceived soul on his way to hell.  The price to be a Christian is not cheap, it never was.   And that’s the problem, modern “Bible teachers” have determined that the price is too high and perhaps the gate is not as narrow as we would have originally thought that it was.  What a great deception.  And then when some poor deceived soul discovers that the Christian life is difficult and is going to cost them something, they walk away feeling frustrated, feeling as though they had been the victim of some cruel practical joke.  And who can blame them?  They were duped, deceived.  If you promise me a beautiful beach at which I can vacation with my family yet withhold from me information such as, it rains everyday or that the beach is full of scorpions, I will probably not stay there very long.  And worse, I am going to be a little bit upset with you, feeling deceived.  Yet there is hope that one day you may win back my friendship.  But, have you ever tried to win back a backslidden Christian?  You would probably have more luck trying to extract a tooth from a hungry lion.  

We need to offer Jesus to everyone, but He is not a used car.  He is of immeasurable value and there are no defects to hide.  So, let’s be honest from the beginning.  Let’s tell them what it is going to be like serving Jesus.  A soul won and counted (not that anyone would count hands in the air) on Sunday and lost on Monday doesn’t count for anything.  Let’s tell them that it’s a vicious battle, but at the same time, let’s tell them how awesome it is to be fighting on God’s side.

For those of you who are already in the fight yet wavering and maybe even questioning whether or not your fight is futile, let me share with you a few words of encouragement and challenge.  First of all, do not quit.  Do not ever quit.  You have to fight, you have to continue running, but you can never quit.  You have a crown of eternal life awaiting you at the end.  Listen to me, don’t quit, don’t ever quit.  And please, don’t come to me with your “good reasons” or excuses.  I have already heard them all.  One thing that all backslidden individuals have in common are “good” excuses, at least in their eyes.  “Someone offended me.” (Tell me e new one.)  “The pastor….” (It’s always the pastor’s fault.)  “There are too many rules.”  Bla, Bla, Bla.  Let me help you understand something here, you who are thinking about quitting or taking “taking some time off” because something or someone offended you, your excuse to turn your back on Jesus and walk away will not hold any water with God.  You would have to be a pretty foolish individual to think that if you die in a backslidden condition that God is going to be interested in why or who was at fault for you quitting.  And in this case, a crown will not be waiting for you, but hell as your reward.

My friend, your Christian life doesn’t have anything to do with anyone who is not you or God.  I know that people have offended you.  I know that there a hypocrites in the church, I am one of them.  You will always have problems around you, that’s a given, but you can’t let them influence or wreck what you have with Jesus.  He is the One who died for you and saved you.  And still, it seems that backsliding is the fad of the hour.  Give your life to Jesus, fall away, go to hell.  Great fad.  What we need to learn and realize is that all of these difficulties are for our good.  God brings the sun as well as the rain, the good as well as the bad.  I don’t know about you, but I learn a whole lot more slipping in the mud and falling down in the rain than I do laying out on a beach sipping bottled water through a straw.  Taking it even further, have you ever noticed that nothing grows on the beach?  Don’t de deceived by the heresy of these preachers of prosperity that want to “bind” everything that’s not a “blessing”. Better yet, read about Job or about the apostles as they were put in prisons and killed for their faith.  Too bad they weren’t a little more spiritual; they could have just “bound” the situation and walked away free to their lives full of happiness.

It’s time for you to rise up as a strong and courageous generation, for that it what you are called to be, not weak, whiney and effeminate.   We are in a war and everything will not always go the way that we would like it to.  But still, we cannot give up.  There is so much that God  wants to do through our lives and in the end we have a reward waiting for us, a crown that rust and moth cannot destroy. 

Don’t quit!  Fight, run, win!


Hb 10:23-39; 
23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. 
26If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people." 31It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. 
32Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. 33Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. 
35So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37For in just a very little while, 
  "He who is coming will come and will not delay. 
   38But my righteous one will live by faith. 
  And if he shrinks back, 
     I will not be pleased with him." 39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.

Pr. Jeff Fromholz
Equipe GB3051138204394115237653500  11 2 31113820439400admin0 0.000000 000003521Suicide<b>Suicide</b> (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the act of willfully ending one's own life.<br><br>

<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/carwreck.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">
He was only 17 and couldn’t find any more reason to live.  Abandoned by his father, a victim of abuse, another move to a new town and the opportunity to once again be the new kid in school, the outsider, no real friends, daily fights with his mother and a dating relationship coming to an end; his world was getting darker everyday with no hope of light and no visible reason to continue on. The funny thing is that all who knew him knew this “happy” kid who was always laughing and making others laugh.  But the pain that he hid behind his false smile was reaching the point of exploding.  

Other than growing up in the church and knowing that God wouldn’t approve of this decision, there wasn’t a whole lot to keep him holding on, and at that point in time not even God seemed enough.  Getting into his car, he sat, staring at nothing, put the key in the ignition and turned it.  When he pulled out of the driveway to his house, there were tears in his eyes, sorry that he couldn’t have done more in his life yet with the intention to not come back.  He had thought of this moment before.  There was a highway that passed right on front of his house with some big curves and lots of trees.  The only thing he had to do was drive really fast and when coming to a curve, not turn.  He would hit the trees head on and end it all, the frustrations and deceptions of life, and for those who didn’t pay any attention to him; they would all notice him now.  

He went about a mile and turned his car around.  The moment to finally resolve his problems had come.  He took a deep breath and putting his foot on the accelerator he grabbed the steering wheel firmly and fixed his eyes on the trees.  And then he pressed his foot down on the accelerator; 10 miles per hours, 20, 40, 60, 80 and the trees coming faster and faster.  He closed his eyes in one last act of closing the final chapter in his life.  And without knowing what happened, he felt the car skid sideways on the gravel and come to a stop in the field next to the trees.  Crying in desperation and shaking from the adrenaline pumping through his body, he just sat there still holding the steering wheel and staring straight ahead.  He had almost killed himself, he wanted to die, yet he was still alive, he didn’t know what had happened.  Maybe it was the hand of God, maybe just a reflex, he would never know.

•    In the past 25 years, while the general incidence of suicide has decreased, the rate for those between 15 and 24 has tripled.  

•    It is generally considered to be the second or third most common cause of death among adolescents, even though it is seriously underreported.

•    For every teen suicide, there are 10 attempted suicides. 

•    Girls attempt suicide three times more than boys, but more boys die from suicide because they use more violent methods. 

•    40% of all high school students have thought about ending their own life.  


What is it that drives a teenager to want to end it all? 

Teenagers experience strong feelings of stress, confusion, doubt about their future, pressure to succeed, uncertainty as to finances, problems with their parents and the opposite sex, and other many other fears.  For some, it could be a divorce in their family, the deception that they experience when two people who have declared their love for one another start to act in ways that are anything but love and eventually throw in the towel; step-mother, step-fathers, new brothers or sisters, uprooting, a new school, all of these are things that upset the foundation of their life, everything that was familiar to them, that brought them comfort and just like that, suicide seems like the only solution.  

Suicide is generally premeditated, but not always.  Many cases of suicide are spontaneous, but many come as a result of depression.  A teenager that is thinking about killing himself might not always be able to see a way out of his problems, an escape from the emotional pain, or how to express his unhappiness or desperation.  But the feeling in general is one of no help or no hope.  We’ve all, been there.  An individual totally caught up in a situation doesn’t always know where to turn or what to do and instead of acting upon what they don’t know, they keep thinking and meditating on how terrible the situation is and how there is no hope and along comes the devil with a solution,

“Why don’t you just kill yourself and end it all? It’s the only way. Nobody cares about you anyway.  You’re all alone.  Kill yourself and be free of this.”

And along with this voice come ideas of how and even where to do it.  Without a doubt, there is a demon behind all of this.  You have to cast that thing down and run; don’t stick around listening to him and his lies.  Ask for help from your parents or friends, your pastor, anyone, but don’t stay there all alone with your fatalistic thoughts and the demon.  Left all alone with these strong emotions of depression, sadness and alienation could lead you to feel even more desperate and to do something desperate of which you will have no way of undoing.  Don’t stay there alone, go for help.

There is no shame in admitting that you need help.  It’s a whole lot better than trying to fight this battle by yourself. There are people, believe it or not, who care about you.  I know that there are times that it seems like no one really cares, but, trust me; it’s only your impression.  Jesus cares about you and I guarantee you that there are others as well other than Him.

Choose life.  There is always hope as long as there is life.  But dead, there is no more hope.  It’s “Game Over.” Life is not like “Counterstrike” in that you always have more lives.  My friend, you only have one life given to you by God and it is to be enjoyed and used for His glory.  Whatever you do, don’t quit.  

Of course, maybe this person isn’t you; maybe it’s someone you know.  If so, please hear this, if you know someone who is depressed or sad, don’t ignore it, check it out.  See if there isn’t something really going on inside of them and if maybe there isn’t something that you can do.   Better to act now and be wrong than not act at all and be right.  Someone’s life might be depending on it.  If the truth be known, many times, the best thing that you can do is just sit by their side and listen.  And whatever you do, please never tell them that what they are feeling is silly or without foundation.  To them, there is reason enough to consider taking their own life regardless of your opinion.  

I am thankful to God that He intervened that day in my car and didn’t let me take my own life.  He had more that He wanted to do in and through me.  My friend, I understand your suffering, I’ve been there.  I understand your desperate feelings, I too have felt them.  I’m not going to try and make less of your feelings, nor will I try to judge whether or not there is any merit to them.  They are your feelings; they are real to you and that it what is important.   But one thing that I do know and maybe you don’t know yet is that God can and will come close to you if you will simply call out to Him.

Psalms 34:18; The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalms 147:3; He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Call out to Him, He’ll come and give you a reason to live.

God bless you!

Pr Jeff    2181146690664115237675500  11 2 31114669066400admin0 0.000000 000003621Bringing Back the Cross<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/trazendo1.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">
<b>John 3:14-15; Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.</b>

After many years, many conferences and many trips, I have discovered something rather sad and frightening; so many beautiful churches full of so many “visions” and methods yet there is almost always something lacking.  Do you know what it is? A cross, yes, a simple cross.

I find it incredible that the majority of Christian churches today no longer have a cross in them.  This for me is rather strange if not down right disturbing.  Where is the cross I ask you?  I remember back years ago to a certain, obnoxious commercial involving an old, half deaf woman, who in reference to fast food restaurants other than Wendy’s would yell, “Where’s the beef?!?” referring to the amount of soy used in their burgers and the lack of actual meat.  If it’s a hamburger, where’s the beef?  So, indulge me, allow me to be that hard-of-hearing old woman today and yell, “Where’s the cross?!?

Is it that perhaps the cross is no longer significant? Is it no longer relevant in our modern world?  If you stop to study your Bible, you will see that beginning with Adam and passing on to Abraham, Moses, David, and the prophets, all pointed towards one person, Jesus, and all pointed towards one thing, his death; his death on a cross.

Without argument, Jesus is the most important figure in the history of the world and the cross, the most important.  The cross is the reason that Jesus came.

Jesus without a cross is like an ocean without water; it doesn’t work, the two go together.  No cross... no salvation.  No cross... no hope.  No cross... no Christianity.

The cross is all that humanity needed and needs.  It wasn’t just a perfect, sinless man, but his death, his bloody death on a cross.

<b>Hebrews 9:22; In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.</b>

We were bought with His blood.  It was His death that the Father required. It’s all about Him and it all has to do with His cross.  So please tell me, how is it that we no longer have crosses in our churches?  

The thing I find most insane is that we have removed the crosses on purpose.  It was not some mistake or oversight, it was something thought out, deliberate, debated, and decided.  Think about that.  Imagine a group of church leaders sitting around discussing whether or not they should leave the cross in the church or remove it.  Worse than that, they actually decided to take it out.  What pure insanity!  How could someone actually think that the church would be better without the cross?  Is it possible that they prayed about it and that God actually told them to take it out?

And now, we put anything in the church that is not a cross.  Huge, expensive banners declaring our “vision”, Stars of David, Israeli flags, glass pulpits, flowers, paintings, whatever, but we don’t put a cross.

Convincing the church to remove the cross has been Satan’s biggest joy and perhaps greatest victory in recent times.

<b>A church without a cross is like a bar without beer.  It doesn’t make sense.</b>

Imagine a visitor entering into a church and being taken back by the beauty of it all yet seeing no cross.  Talk about strange.  He wouldn’t know if he was in a church or the lobby of the local Hyatt Regency.  Of course, maybe that’s the point.  Yet still I protest.  We need to bring back the cross and not only a physical cross, but sermons about the cross.

We preach about a lot of things today, prosperity, blessings, restoration, everything we want to hear, and everything that tickles our ears and pleases our flesh.  Yet let me ask you, if you are not “blessed” or “prosperous”, will you walk away, will you leave Him?  Is it for this that we follow and serve Him?  Since when did Christianity represent these things?  When did Christianity lose the eternal focus and fall into the pit of temporal “blessings”?  Was it for a new car or house that Jesus died for you? I think not.

The early church understood well the sacrifice and suffering that the cross represented.  Maybe we do too.  Maybe that’s the problem.  Maybe it’s this gospel of suffering and sacrifice that we want nothing to do with and for that alone we have removed the cross.  We want our blessings and nothing more.  We don’t want to suffer.  We wrongly think and have been taught that Jesus suffered so that we don’t have to.  To that I say, yes and no.  He suffered so that we don’t have to suffer in hell, the penalty for our sins, but he also promised that we would suffer as His followers.  If He suffered, so will we.  If He was rejected, so will we be.   This “bless me” gospel is not Christianity!  It is unbridled selfishness and egotistical.  So, please tell me, “Where is the cross?”

It saddens me every time that I enter into a church and see it decorated with colorful banners declaring their “vision”; their vision that ends up being nothing more than disguised idolatry. 

“Are you in the vision?” ask some...what worthless chatter.  It’s just another golden calf waiting to be ground into dust.  It makes one want to scream, “It’s not for this that Jesus died!”  Jesus didn’t die for any vision other than the one that has to do with reaching the lost in this world.

You can say whatever you want about “your vision”, but as soon as you start spending more time talking about “your vision” than the cross, you have an idol in your midst and that it is what we are seeing in the churches today; a lot of golden calves.  It’s something so common that hardly anybody even notices anymore.  We have thoroughly confused human visions and strategies with the gospel.  But, the two are not the same.  Again I ask you, “Where is the cross?” 

We need more sermons about the cross, other than Easter week, communion Sunday, or at the end of the service right before the “invitation”.  It’s the cross that transforms. It’s the message of the cross that saves.  We have to bring the cross back to our churches!

Leaving the church for a moment, let’s take a look at out own personal lives and the result therein of having taken the cross out of our churches and pulpits.  Allow me to ask you, “How many times this week have you stopped your busy life in order to meditate on the cross?  How many times this week have you thanked Jesus for having died there?  

My friend, it’s sad when we own up to the truth in our own lives.  For many of us, the cross and what it represents is nothing more than a one time decision made to “give our lives to Jesus”.  And beyond that, we have basically forgotten what it’s all about.  I’m not trying to be facetious, rather, very serious.  We live our normal lives chasing after temporal comforts and pleasures and essentially forgetting the most important thing:  Christ and His cross.  It shouldn’t be this way.  It can’t be this way.   

So, why should we remember the cross?

• The cross reminds us of Jesus death.
• The cross reminds us that we are forgiven. 
• The cross reminds us that we are not our own and that we were
  bought at a very high price.
• The cross reminds us that we were set free from the power of sin.
• The cross reminds us that He loves us.
• The cross reminds us of our reason for living; to win souls. 
• The cross reminds us of who we are and how we should act.
• The cross reminds us that He is invincible and is coming back.

We need to keep the cross constantly before us.  We need to see and remember it daily.  We need to bring the cross back into our lives.  Without the cross, there is no holiness. Without the cross, there is no reason for life. Without the cross, there is no relationship with God.  

The cross is a whole lot more than just some ancient symbol.  It is the price that Christ paid in order to save us and something that we cannot risk losing.  The cross represents our salvation, our pardon, our freedom, the cure, a new life.  We can’t just throw it away for fear that someone may idolize it. I find it ridiculous how some evangelicals won’t wear a cross around their neck, yet wear a Star of David, although they are not Jewish, as though it holds some magical power.  I have nothing against the Star of David being that my savior was Jewish, but, let’s check back into the sane world for a minute and realize that the Star of David will save no one.  Nobody died on a star.  What we really need to do is admit that the Star of David is nothing more than a fashion trend in the Christian word that doesn’t really have a whole lot to do with the Christian life.  But the cross is everything that we are.  

A lot of people don’t wear a cross for fear of being thought to be Catholic.  Let’s grow up a little here.  If a Catholic identifies with the cross like I should, great.  What’s the problem?  Say what you want, but I know a few “Catholics” that are whole lot more “Christian” than a lot of “Evangelicals”.  We need to remind ourselves that it’s not a church that is going to save anyone, not a vision, but Jesus Christ who died on a cross.  And this cross we need to always be putting before us.  It’s our salvation and commission.

<b>“Take up your cross and follow me.”</b>

We need to bring back the cross.

Pr Jeff Fromholz1721152376498117287038200  11 2 31115237649800admin0 0.000000 000003721Rediscovering your wild heart.<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/gato.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">
<b>“We build churches that become nothing more than hiding places for the faithful while pretending that our actions are for the good of the world.”</b> 
Erwin Raphael McManus

Once upon a time there lived a wild and courageous tiger. He was a big tiger and when he roared all of the other animals trembled.  He was most certainly the king of his jungle.  He spent his time, day after day, walking around in his jungle, killing when he needed to, and enjoying his power and freedom until the day that he was captured in a net and put into a cage. He slammed his body against the cage, growled, roared, but to no avail.  There was no way out of the cage.  He would simply have to get accustomed to his new surroundings. After quite some time, they let him out of his prison and started to work with him using whips and chains until the day that they could get close and pet him.  And to be honest, after so much time alone in the cage, he enjoyed the attention.  And after a little while longer, they put him into an area with other tigers, all domesticated. At least he was no longer alone. Every once in a while, when he let out a roar, one of the trainers would come over quickly to let him know that this is not the correct manner in which to act.  “A domesticated cat does not roar.” And with time, he stopped roaring and accommodated himself to passing the days lying around on a couch, hanging out with the other tame tigers, and receiving affection from the trainers every once in a while.  He spent years like this, just hanging out and thinking of how good his life was, everything peaceful, all of his needs provided for, a little attention every now and then, until the day he heard a tiger outside roaring. In that moment, something awoke in him, something deep inside stirred that reminded him of times past when he was someone, when he was free, when he had a reason to live.  He looked around himself at all of the other domesticated tigers and then he looked at the window and all of the sudden, something snapped, and he began to run in the direction of the window and in one quick movement, he jumped and crashing through the window fell two stories to the ground.  He hit the ground hard and rolled, and then picked himself up, roared, and without looking back, went back into the jungle; back to the life that God had called him to live.  For a tiger was never created to be domesticated.  He is a creature wild at heart.

What we see today is a domesticated church, everything perfect and in its place, full of people content to lie around on the couch all day waiting to receive the affection of their pastor every once in awhile, but in the meantime doing nothing to change their life or the world around them.  I don’t know if you remember when you first gave you life to Christ and you were all excited about what He had done in your life and wanted to tell everyone; you wanted to win the world for Jesus, and you even tried until a “trainer” came over to inform you that this is not how it works.  You can’t just go around yelling about sin and hell and the cross all of the time.  And then he went on to inform you that even so, your flame would eventually go out, the fire would pass.  And unfortunately, he was probably right.  He knew because his fire had gone out years before and it was nothing more than a memory.  After some more time of the “trainers” working with you, you finally stopped shouting about sin and hell because “that’s not how the domesticated act”.

I never feel so out of place than when I am in a fancy restaurant or some place all formal because I don’t know exactly what to do or how to act.  To be honest, I haven’t had a lot of practice at it.  I always have fun, but I am always aware that I might be committing some faux paux or making a mistake and that every one around me knows it and will later be commenting about the idiot in the restaurant and laughing.  I remember one time in particular when my wife and I were in a restaurant in San Paulo and she almost had a heart attack when I grabbed the bottle of bottled water and put it to my lips to drink. It never dawned on me to use the glass.  If they wanted me to use a glass, why did they give me the bottle?  Anyhow, after helping her up from the floor, I was informed that in “such a place”, you never drink from the bottle.  Live and learn.  And this is what happens in the church.  When we enter, we enter all half nuts, wild to the max, pointing out every sin that we see and wanting to know why the church doesn’t evangelize the lost or help the poor that sit out in front of the church.  But with time, they manage to put a collar around our necks and lead us around with a leash.  And after a little bit more time, they put a coat and tie on us or maybe a dress and then tell us, “Now you’re one of us.” We eventually even forget about the things that bothered us when we first entered; the sin that we saw going on inside the church, the lost, and the poor, because it’s so nice to be in the “house of God” laying on our spiritual couches and waiting for some affection.  “Why do we need to worry about the world outside?”  “We’re inside now.”  And with just a little more time, you forget the fact that at one time, you were wild and dangerous, something that God created you to be.  You’ve forgotten how to roar.  And in the place of roaring, you now sit around “meowing” and purring and rubbing up against the sides of the other domestic cats with which you now spend your time.

And them one day you hear the sound of a real tiger outside roaring and something stirs in you; something awakes and you remember who you were and how it was before and all of the sudden you realize how much you miss you.  When you look in the mirror, you don’t even recognize yourself anymore and to be honest, you don’t like what you see.  This is not what God created you to be.  God created you as an individual, someone different from the rest.  God did not create you to be “clone” even though discipleship has managed to clone a generation of Christians.  Discipleship was supposed to be the modeling of the life and person of Jesus.  “Imitate me as I imitate Christ.” He is ultimately the one to be imitated; in action, but not a physical copy of him.  I find it rather ridiculous when the disciples of some pastor dress like him, act like him, talk like him; literally imitating how he is?  I imagine it must stroke the ego of the one being imitated, but it’s kind of sad for the one who lost his identity in the deal, and I doubt that it does anything to please the heart of God.  I guarantee you that this was not God’s idea or intention when he started discipleship.  It’d almost enough to make you laugh if it wasn’t so sad to see one more domesticated cat without an identity of its own.

But, every one in a while, one of these domesticated cats hears a tiger outside roaring and he remembers who he is and who God created him to be; something wild.  And he looks at the big window in the sanctuary, the stained glass one with Mary holding the baby Jesus, and then he gets up and starts running towards the window and then all of the sudden, he jumps, breaking the window and cutting himself up as he falls to the ground.  And as he picks himself up, he breathes the fresh air once again and feels the freedom, something he hadn’t felt for awhile, bringing to mind something that had always confused him.  When he was invited to enter into the church in the beginning and be a part of it, he was told that it was to “set him free”, but he never felt free inside with the collar around his neck and being told not to “roar”.  But now he was free, feeling the wind in his hair, and at this he let out a roar so loud that the rest of the windows in the church vibrated.  If he could have heard the voices of those still in the church, still shut up in the cage, he would have heard the other domesticated cats speaking of him with sad tones in their voices; sad, but more condemning, speaking of one more backslidden cat.  The youth are leaving the church today a whole lot quicker than they are entering and it’s not because they don’t want Jesus.  They want Jesus.  What they don’t want is to be domesticated.  They don’t want to be somebody’s pet. And just like that, they leave and are referred to as backslidden.

But, are they really the ones who are backslidden?  The church has lost its way today to such an extent that it no longer even knows why it exists.  The church in the beginning was a starting place, a place to gather to be eventually sent out of to Judea, Samaria and the rest of the world.  Now it’s a place to gather and stay and hide; in reality, a cage; our own self made prison.  We don’t go anywhere.  We just stay inside hanging out on our couches, taking advantage of the mutual affection, forgetting that God created us to be wild and free not domesticated.  He created us to take back what the devil has stolen, to rescue lost souls from the mouth of hell.  

It’s a war out there and domesticated cats are not going to be of much help or make anyone tremble.  They’ll show up on the field of battle rubbing up against the leg of the enemy, as if that’s going to put fear into his heart.  He might laugh, or pet them, but run, never. God is raising up a group of tigers that are ripping off the collars of the traditional church and jumping out of the windows.  And sadly they are being referred to as rebels and backslidden, a lot like Martin Luther and every other man of God that got to the point that he couldn’t take the state of a backslidden church anymore and did something. I am not so worried about those that are leaving; at least they know what they are doing.  I am more concerned with those that are left inside.  Is it not possible that they are the ones that have “fallen away”; fallen away from the reason for which they were saved?  My fear and suspicion is that the church has become the very religion that Jesus confronted two thousand years ago; a religion that he hated and criticized; a religion that was deaf to the cries of a world lost and going to hell.  I don’t doubt for one minute that if Jesus were to walk on the earth one more time, the church would crucify him again, for He would not keep quiet and content himself to sit on some plush sofa, but would speak out against the prevalent dead religion and sin that we find in our churches today.  He would speak out against the religious systems full of rules created by men and the church methods that the people adore rather than God.  He would speak out against the pulpits full of sin and the Pharisees who occupy them. He would speak out against them to the point that they would kill Him again.  This I do not doubt

So, where do we go?  These days, I am not hearing the sound of revival but the sound of a people who are not content with the religious systems of the day.  It’s the sound of a revolution about to happen, the continuation of a revolution that Jesus started two thousand years ago.  And to be honest, I am hoping for this, I am praying for this, I am fasting for this.  What the church needs today is holy revolt; a revolution taking us back to our roots; back to the jungle and our wild heart where we can truly fight against the powers of hell.  I know that I risk being misunderstood and maybe criticized for potentially inciting a rebellion, but this is not my intention.  I would much rather see changes in the institution that we commonly call the church.  But if that doesn’t happen and the church won’t change, believe it; I am totally in favor of an insurrection.  I am more concerned with those who are on their way to hell that with the Pharisees who are content to have everyone kissing their rings. 

The time has come for us to rediscover our voices and stop pretending that everything is okay in a church full of sin and hypocrisy.  The time has come for us to rediscover our wild hearts and rediscover the reason for our lives.  The Christian is not a creature that was created to be domesticated; he is wild; God created him like that and like that God is pleased with him.

God bless you.

Jeff 1631157815075117287041800  11 2 31115781507500admin0 0.000000 000003821Chris1. 05/10/2006
Dear friends,

Thank you so much for all of your prayers.  We believe that there is a reason that God already brought Chris back from the dead.  

Yesterday, Chris’s oldest daughter, Jessica, went in to see him and took his hand and said, “Dad, it’s me Jessica, I’m here” and Chris squeezed her hand so hard that she almost cried.  Let’s believe that this in only the beginning of the miracle.

Today is also Nick’s funeral.  Please be praying for all those involved.

I will also be traveling to Ponta Grossa, Paraná today so there will not be any updates until I return on Monday.

God bless you!

Jeff



2. 11/10/2006
Dear friends,

We are still waiting for the miracle, Chris is still in a coma, but each day shows continued progress.  Yesterday they did a tracheotomy, which means that there are no longer tubes running in and out of Chris’s mouth and nose.  He continues to move a little more every day.  What we need is for him to wake up now; of course God’s knows the perfect timing.  Yesterday as Correna was sitting in the room with him, he started to sit up.  He sat up about 18 inches and opened his eyes, like he was going to wake up and then lay back down and went to sleep.  

It’s amazing to see the faith of everyone put into action.  Various people have come up to Correna in order to give her a pledge card for financial support as they were in the process of raising funds to be missionaries in Brazil.  Basically people are just declaring and believing that Chris is going to get up and still go to Brazil.  I believe that too.  And crazy enough, when he does get up, their support will be all in place.

Please do not become weary in your prayers (I say that to me as well).  We need God to still restore Chris’s brain as well as his body.  My prayer is that Chris’s life will be nothing more than a living testimony to the love and power of God. 

God bless you!

Jeff



3. 18/10/2006
Dear friends,

Sorry for the lack of updates, Chris had pretty much remained unchanged for the past few days, thus, not much to tell.  They moved him out of the ICU until yesterday when he began having problems breathing and developed a very high fever.  They suspected blood clots, so they rushed him back to the ICU, put him on blood thinning medicine and put him on a paralytic drug in order to try and control the situation.  He came off of the sedative today and is no longer breathing on his own.  They now suspect that he has a blood clot in his lung.  Please pray as this is a desperate hour (for us, obviously not for God)

We love you!

Jeff



4. 19/10/2006
Hello friends,

Please keep praying.  Last night Chris had a blood clot pass through his heart and he went into cardiac arrest.  They were able to shock him back again.  He was then stable throughout the night and he is going into surgery this morning.  They are going to put a screen into his veins that should stop any clots from getting through.  His biggest risk at present is blood clots.  Anyhow, I will try to keep you updated as to the outcome of the surgery.  God is good and in control.

Jeff



5. 27/10/2006
Dear friends, 

Chris has stabilized now.  I don’t what all that means other than he is out of any imminent danger.  He has now come off of the paralytic drugs and has begun opening his eyes.  There is some involuntary movement, reaction to pain, hot and cold, but what we are praying for is voluntary movement; Chris making things happen.

Please continue to pray.  This miracle seems to be starting to happen.

Jeff



6. 01/11/2006
Dear friends,

Please continue to pray.  On Monday, October 30th, Chris was taken from Grand Rapids, Spectrum Hospital to Muskegon, Select Rehab. 
Select Rehab is an Acute Rehab facility.  The reason for this move is so that Chris can get the care he needs for the road to recovery.  Please continue to pray for a fast recovery.

We will be traveling as a family to San Paulo this weekend to do a youth camp, so there will be no new updates for a few days.  If you want to better keep up, there is now a website for Chris; www.chrisklco.com.

I will also be leaving next Tuesday to go to the States to be with Chris and his family. I don’t know exactly what I can do to help, but I think just being there might be something.  I will be gone for three weeks, so please pray for Lisa and the family as well.  We love you!

Jeff


5301160061300117287047200  11 2 31116006130000admin0 0.000000 000003921Rediscovering your Wild Heart 2<img border="1" src="http://www.geracaobenjamim.com/images/cat.jpg" hspace="5" align="left">After all of the noise form the first<b>“Rediscovering your Wild Heart”</b>, we felt an obligation to publish a second part.

In this one, we are not going to focus on the cages or the trainers, but on the “tigers”, because we recognize that there are leaders, even though the churches have created cages (and that is without argument), that have left the door of the cage ajar and are not impeding the tigers in their quest to return to the forest with the intention of influencing the lost.   And I do have to admit that there are some pastors that I know who are not interested in being the owner of the church and telling everyone what to do.  They really are interested in encouraging the tigers to make a difference.  So then, what is the problem?

The problem is that many (not the majority) of those who read the first e-pistle agreed with it and even thought of jumping, once for all, from the second story of the cage without realizing that the door was open.  In other words, there are a lot of “cats” that would like to believe that they are “tigers” and that the system has changed them, when the truth is that they always were a little bit more in touch with their cat side and that they are very comfortable in the cage, thank you very much.  They were never truly wild.  It’s kind of like the skinny, weak guy at work who likes to tell stories of how when he was younger he used to beat up everyone.  Yeah right, the guy would have had problems with the wind.  His memory is nothing more than a big dream that nobody believes.  If the truth were to be known, everyone would be trying to keep a straight face and not fall on the ground laughing in front of him.  The real problem is that when someone starts to speak of tigers, they begin to feel awkward because they know that they are not one and maybe should be, and they even go so far as to pretend that they are really bothered, maybe even indignant, by the reality of the cage.  But the truth is that they are comfortable on the couch and so long as no one says that it is wrong, they stay there relaxing, never thinking of the forest.  

The church today is full of complacent, lazy individuals that don’t give a minimum about the world outside (of course someone has to organize the parties and events), and the only thing that bothers them is when someone says something that leaves them thinking that what they are doing isn’t enough, or what God wants.  And when that happens, they will react in one of two ways: they will either argue with you until almost reaching the point of ripping your head off, or they will pretend that they too feel trapped and that the cage is wrong.  Yet the real problem still exists, they are domesticated cats.

On the other side of the fence, we have tigers that are real, and as much as we like to blame the cage and those who created it, the fact still remains that we entered into the cage and have the capacity to leave, especially if the door was left open.  In the end, the ones to blame for all of this is us, tigers that with extraordinary ease and very little fight have chosen to stay where it is comfortable.  And it is there that we find our biggest frustration, not over the reality of the cage or the trainers, but with ourselves, over the fact that we have allowed ourselves to become comfortable and complacent.  We seemed to have lain down with such ease, but we don’t seem to be able to rise up again.  We look in the mirror and see that we have become cats and we freak out in indignation at our situation.  But, instead of dealing with the fact that we are weak and afraid to speak out or act, we prefer to blame those who are close to us, in other words, the church and her leaders.

The truth is that this generation is full of the base ingredient of fertilizer, you know, the stuff you put in your garden to help the flowers grow.  This generation speaks incessantly about wanting to change the world yet doesn’t do anything beyond complaining and crying about the situation while lying on a couch.  The craziest thing of all is that it is this generation that is building the cages of which they will later complain about.  Yet, the door is still open.  This generation declares that they want to be a holy generation while they choose to sin and then look for excuses for their sins.  This generation has a lot of good intentions, but until now, very little action.  I am not stating that they have no calling, they do, but they need to wake up from their spiritual stupor.  Life is going to pass them by and later on they are going to want to know why “the word of the Lord” wasn’t fulfilled in their lives.

And while we have reason enough to be indignant with an institution that I believe has little to do with what Jesus intended or wanted, I have to admit that the biggest part of the problem is with our desire for ease and comfort.  It is us that decide to remain on the couch.  It is us that are afraid to leave the cage because we don’t know how to deal with the tigers outside.  It is us that desire the affection of the trainers more than we desire to be used by the Creator.  As much as we want to blame others, we need go no further than the nearest mirror to find the real reason that we are in the cage.  Not to say that there are no cages with their doors locked, there are some, but the majority of the churches simply have their doors ajar and whoever would so desire to leave simply need try the handle.

So, before jumping and risking hurting yourself, check to see if the door is open or not.  And if it is, you have the freedom to come and go as you please.  Go.  Leave.  Evangelize.  But don’t forget, there are people in the cage that love you and are trying to protect you.  They are not trying to kill you.

Also, before you start hollering about all of the injustices and evils of the institution and about the man holding you back, look in the mirror to see if the real reason that you are not busy serving God maybe isn’t you.  Don’t do what is natural and blame everything and everyone around you.  Be honest with yourself and the situation.  And just in case you don’t like the animal that you see in the mirror, you have the ability to change. 

God bless you!

Jeff1411162213649117287050400  11 2 31116221364900admin0 0.000000 0000040137More than just a pretty face.It was on a recent ministry trip that God gave me a revelation of my wife and the young girls of this generation. One morning when I woke, I don’t know what got into me, but when I looked at her, I saw something different, something that I hadn’t stopped long enough to notice; something beyond the obvious. You have to understand, my wife is a stay at home wife. She takes care of our home, teaches school to our three children and has to somehow stay afloat married to me. Yet beyond her work which I would never desire for myself, there lies a godly woman, a woman who gets up early every day to seek God, who doesn’t skip reading her Bible, and who has a very sensitive conscience when it comes to the things of God, especially sin. But strange as it is, these things are the things least spoken of between us. Usually when I speak of her, it has something to do with her beauty, her butt, or something that has to do with the physical. Yes, I know, those are good things as she is my wife and I am passionately in love with her, but it has been far too long since I have stopped to notice that my wife is so much more than just a pretty face. 

Maybe I can blame it on society or maybe it’s just my own warped flesh, but when I look at her, the thing most obvious is what’s on the outside. Normal, yet any half-way intelligent person can tell you that the outside can be deceptive, the real value is inside. Nobody gets all excited about the way a present is wrapped.  They wait until they unwrap the present to see if the gift inside is worth getting excited about. But when was the last time you heard someone, other than another woman, talking about what was inside of a woman, her character traits, or that she cares for her house and children well? We usually only hear about her house if it has been declared a national disaster area or her kids after they burn down the local library, but to hear something positive is rare indeed. I remember when I was a teenager and my mom would begin to talk about some girl my age when out of nowhere would come the dreaded phrase, “She has a real nice personality,” code for “she’s really ugly and run for your life”. Yeah, I can be pretty shallow. But, that’s what society values in women and it has taught us to value. If she’s pretty, she is valued and pushed out front for everyone to see, like some trophy. But is she is less than Covergirl pretty, she has a bright future ahead of her as someone’s secretary, because a nice voice over the telephone can cover up for what lacks in the face. And unfortunately, this is what has been passed on to this generation of young women all worried about their bodies, their hair and their faces.

Recently in my home, I have noticed an abnormal preoccupation in my wife regarding her weight, gray hair and other oddities. I’m sure it has something to do with the fact that she is approaching forty quicker than she wants to. Personally I don’t know what she’s so worried about; gray hairs would be welcomed guests on my head that seems to lacking more and more hair each day regardless of the color. There is something that you need to know about my wife, she is beautiful, not your average, “Yeah, she’s pretty”, but truly beautiful, and she has the complete package with a very blessed figure.  And maybe that’s part of the problem.  She’s afraid of losing what she’s always had, what has always been a big part of her identity, leaving her very different. And for this I asked her forgiveness that morning. I realized that I am partly to blame for this worry that she now has in her life; I, who only speak of her beauty and body and whistle every time she passes by. Unfortunately her value has been reduced to something carnal and temporary. Even before this, her situation was a bit complicated as she grew up in California, the plastic capital of the world, where beaches, bikinis and beautiful bodies are the currency of the hour. And she grew up being complimented because of her beauty resulting in her errantly believing that her role as a woman in this world was to make it a more beautiful place, like an ornament on some cosmic Christmas tree. Then as a teenager it became a bit more complicated for her as she struggled with anorexia in an inexhaustible attempt to attain and maintain the perfect figure. She finally got to a point of being dangerously thin and endangering her health, but God thankfully helped her.

Allow me to say that I think that there is something desperately wrong when the value of a woman is for the most part connected to her beauty and not who she is. We see this so clearly when hear parents talking of their kids or listen to ourselves speaking of ours, “Our kids are beautiful,” or “She is so pretty,” or “Your kids are beautiful.” I guess you get the point, but let’s be honest, “So what?” Everyone is going to get old one day, get fat, lose their hair, and plenty of women are one day going to find themselves putting their hand in their pocket in order to adjust their bra. So what? Have we no more value than that? Are we nothing more than a couch that after years of sitting on it begins to sag and is one day thrown out? How true it is that man looks on the outside. True, yet wrong, superficial. We need be more like God and look on the inside.

<b>1Sa 16:7;<i> But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."</i></b>

Wouldn’t it be nice to hear people saying things like, “My daughter is a godly young woman, she loves Jesus with all of her heart,” independent of her face. But this is not the world that we live in. Even so, I can still try to change my world. My wife and my daughters will know that they are beautiful because that’s important to them, but they will also understand that what’s most important is not outward beauty, but a heart after God. 

<b>1Pe 3:3-5;<i> Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty that depends on fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit which is so precious to God. That is the way the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They trusted God and accepted the authority of their husbands.</i></b>

After asking my wife to forgive me for having been so shallow with her for 16 years, I told her that she is so much more than just a pretty face, that she is a woman of God, faithful, loyal, a good mother and intelligent. I can’t say for certain, but judging by the tears that began to flow, I suspect that it was the first time that someone stopped long enough to notice and compliment her on something other than her beauty.  I have now made a commitment to her and to myself to each day tell her of something of value that I see in her. This may seem strange, but she needs to know of and hear these things and I need to notice.

It’s sad when the value of a large part of God’s creation has been so reduced and twisted. Ask yourself why such young girls today are using makeup and wearing clothing that leave nothing to the imagination. They are simply playing the part that society has told them is theirs, they are decorations to be judged and admired or rejected.  But this is not God’s opinion of them or what His word tells us. God didn’t put anyone on this earth to be decoration. A woman has her own specific part to play that is hers and only hers. The Bible speaks of the role of women in Titus 2:3-5, the role of the older women (not always old women) and the roles of the younger ones.  

<b>Titus 2:3-5;<i> Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.</i></b>

This is the Biblical role of the woman, where she will most feel complete in her life. God created the woman to come alongside of her husband, helping him and taking care of her home and children. No, I am not a male chauvinist; I am only citing what the Bible says. If you don’t like it, talk to God.  Your fight is with him, not me. And this is an old fight.  The world has been attacking the Word of God in this area for years. Yet still, this doesn’t change what is written. 

A short time ago, my wife took our kids to the doctor and filling out the forms, she had to respond to, “What is you profession?” She put down “Mom, I take care of my home.” After she turned it in, the girl at the desk called her back to question her as to her profession. “What is that you do?” And Lisa responded, “I am a mom.  I take care of my home.” “But you can’t put that down.  That doesn’t count.” And here we find out exactly what the world thinks. “That doesn’t count.” And this is the message that young girls have been receiving for years. Being a mother isn’t something of value. Raising your kids doesn’t count. Worse, these are things looked down upon. “Oh, you don’t work?” Yeah right. “Don’t be just a mom.  Do something useful with your life. Go to college, get you own job, earn your own money, be your own person.” Society respects that. And for exactly this reason we see so many young moms abandoning their homes and families in order to go back and study or work so that they can feel valued and be seen as an important and productive member of society. God help us. What is to become of these kids being abandoned in daycares? Society will one day pay for this and the price is going to be much more that it ever expected; all of this so that a mother can please and receive the approval from the very thing that in the end she will one day destroy. There is nothing more important and needed in the life of a child than his mother her involvement in his life.

I understand the pressure that a young girl feels to go to college and “be somebody”. I hear all of the ignorant comments made everyday by ignorant people in regards to this. Society, and many times the church itself, are telling them to “be someone, to do something, to have your own profession, your own money, your own identity and not just that of the wife of so and so or the mother of so and so. And this will bring you true happiness and value.” I doubt it. I know a lot of stressed out women trying to be men or in the minimum trying to be like them and playing their role in the grand scheme of life. Even mothers are stressed out today because we don’t give them their proper value. We need to return to the values of the Bible and quit listening to what the world tells us once and for all. There is nothing shameful in being a mother or a wife. It is a place of privilege and honor, a place where the praises will come later on when you children are walking with the Lord and one day rise up and call you blessed. 

<b>Pr 31:25-29;<i> She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all."</i></b>

To try and convince a world that hates God of the need for His values to be restored and put into practice might be difficult, if not impossible. But at least we can bring them back to the church. It starts right here with us, we need to stop seeing women as simply objects and see that they are more than just a pretty face. Husbands need to stop where they are and see the good in their wives, their character, godly characteristics. Sadly many wives don’t see themselves as anything more than a maid by day and a concubine by night, more than likely because that is how they have been treated. God created the feminine sex to be so much more than just a baby factory and a servant. He made her to partner with man, to walk with him and to give her life for her family. And only there will a woman find total satisfaction in this life.

Young girls, you are so much more than just a pretty face. You are someone loved by Jesus and you have a purpose here on this earth beyond being a special effect. And guys, if you hope to have good marriages and a happy home, learn to look beyond the wrapping paper of the woman. Learn to see her for who she truly is and let her know that she has value beyond her face and body. Together we can restore the institution of the family that the world has practically. We all have our roles in this production called life. We just need to discover what ours is and fulfill it.

<b>Proverbs 31:30-31;<i> Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.</i></b>

God bless you!

Jeff1141172870332117287234900  11 2 31117287033200admin0 0.000000 00000