“I [God] will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”¹

According to an article in The Recorder, “A 19-year-old girl by the name of Khun Paot, escaped the Khmer Rouge rule in Cambodia after an arduous journey with 100 others through miles of jungle, canals, mountains, and rivers. Standing between them and freedom were communist soldiers, the elements, and a stretch of jungle ground covered with thorns. Most of the escapees were barefoot or wore flimsy thongs.

“A midnight-like darkness hampered the struggling group as it crossed a valley between two high mountain ranges. ‘We could see absolutely nothing,’ Paot later told a missionary, Maxine Stewart. ‘We didn’t even know where to step.’ Suddenly hundreds of fireflies swarmed into view. Their glow made enough light for the people to see the path. The refugees reached the next mountain by firefly light, said Mrs. Stewart.

“After Paot was transferred to Kham Put refugee camp, she was invited to a Christian meeting. ‘I know that old man,’ she exclaimed at a picture on the wall of the chapel. ‘He is the one who led us and showed us the way to Thailand and freedom.’ She was pointing to a picture of Jesus.”²

Ever since my youth, every morning I have committed and trusted my life and way to God, trusting him to guide me all through my life knowing that he could make a much better job of my life than I ever could. Now, as I look back over the years, I can genuinely say in the words of the hymn writer, “Jesus led me all the way.”

God will do the same for you, too, should you genuinely commit and trust your life to him every day for the rest of your life.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that when I commit and trust my life to you, you will teach me in the way that I should go and will guide me with your eye. And that’s what I do today. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Psalm 32:8, NKJV).
2. The Recorder, September 1979, p. 25. Source: www.esermons.com.

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“But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses” (emphasis mine).¹

If there were ever a day when people and churches need to take a stand for moral living it is today. If abortionists and homosexuals have their way it may, in the not too distant future, be a crime for anyone, including the church, to quote the Bible regarding these issues and argue for God’s position. Just writing on this topic is bound to get me criticized—it pretty much always does.

According to Chuck Colson: “Particularly some younger evangelicals are suggesting that we stay away from divisive issues like abortion and homosexuality altogether and just go back and be like the first-century Church—stay out of politics, tend to our spiritual knitting.

“I wonder what early Church they are talking about. Take just the issue of abortion. The early Church was outspokenly pro-life right from the beginning just as the Jews had been. In the second chapter of the Didache, one of the first discipleship books for young Christians written in the first century, was this stern injunction: ‘Thou shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill them when born.’ Justin Martyr wrote about this in his first apology. And in the second century, Athenagoras wrote a plea to Emperor Marcus Aurelius: ‘We say that women that use drugs to bring abortion commit murder and will have to give an account to God for the abortion.’”²

Churches and Christians who refuse or fail to take a stand for that which is morally right according to God’s Word are not like the early Christians. They are being controlled by political correctness which, in reality (much of it) is political incorrectness and will, if we continue to allow it, eventually weaken and make the church ineffective as it has become in much of Europe. While Jesus always loved sinners, he never approved of sinful behaviors in any form—nor was he ever concerned about being politically correct.

Had he been, we would not have a Savior or the gift of salvation and God’s forgiveness. We would be eternally lost.

Today, Christian churches and we who call ourselves Christians need to stand up and be counted; that is, as the Apostle Paul commissioned Timothy: Flee all sinful immoral behavior … Follow after righteousness … and Fight the good fight for truth and that which is morally correct rather than that which is politically correct.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God please give me a love for your Word and a clear understanding of it so I will know in my heart and mind that which is morally correct according to your standards. And give me the courage to make a stand always for that which is right in your sight; to flee all sinful behaviors; to follow after righteousness; and to fight your good fight. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. The Apostle Paul (1 Timothy 6:11-12, KJV).
2. Chuck Colson, BreakPoint, August 1, 2006 www.breakpoint.org.

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“While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.”¹

Yesterday we talked about visiting Athens, Corinth and Ephesus, and other ancient historical places, and ending in Istanbul, a city largely populated by M’slims.

Istanbul was certainly a fascinating ancient city but hearing the M’slim call to prayer was just another reminder that radical M’slims throughout the world are on the march and while many M’slims want to live in peace, the increasing number of radicals believe the only peace is when Jews, Christians and Westerners either convert to I’lam or are dead. And they have no qualms about killing us.

Frighteningly, far too many leaders in the West are wanting appeasement with these I’lamic fanatical fundamentalists when, in reality, there is no such thing.

Mathias Dapfner, CEO of the large German publisher, Axel Springer, blasted Europe for its weakness in confronting I’lamic fanaticism. He talked how appeasement with Hitler cost millions of Jews and Gentiles their lives … how appeasement contributed to the stabilizing of the Communist Soviet Union and the former East Germany, and “crippled Europe when genocide ran rampant in Kosovo…. And in the end it is also appeasement at its most grotesque when Germany reacts to the escalating violence of I’lamic fundamentalists in Holland and elsewhere by proposing a national M’slim holiday.”²

And here in America, while most M’slims want to live in peace, a recent poll by the Pew Research Center reported that: “One out of four young U.S. M’slims believe homicide bombings against civilians are OK to ‘defend I’lam,’”³ at least under certain circumstances.

I’lam claims to be a religion of peace but peace is highly unlikely between Jews and Palestinians or between radical M’slims and the Western world until Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, returns to earth to finally put an end to all wars and bring in lasting peace. In fact, as the Word of God reminds us, “While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.¹

The reality is that throughout the world there is an urgent need for a great spiritual awaking—an awakening to the reality of today’s volatile world and our urgent need for God and the need to live in harmony with his will. Without God there is no hope for any lasting peace and any end to a world filled with hatred and violence.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please open the eyes of my understanding to see the reality of today’s volatile world situation and our world-wide need for a great spiritual awakening. And please start your work in me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. The Apostle Paul (1 Thessalonians 5:3, NIV).
2. Mathias Dapfner, CEO of the large German publisher, Axel Springer. Editorial: “Europe, Thy Name is Cowardice,” published in the German periodical Die Welt, November 20, 2004. http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/dapfner.asp
3. Poll: 1 in 4 U.S. Young M’slims OK With Homicide Bombings Against Civilians, Fox News. May 23, 2007. http://tinyurl.com/ywmyoz

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“Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars’ hill, and said, ‘Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.’”¹

“I walked today where the Apostle Paul walked.”

I wrote those words several months ago when Joy and I had the opportunity to stand at the top of Mars Hill overlooking the city of Athens in Greece. On this hill, or close to it, almost 2000 years ago in the shadow of the infamous historical Parthenon, the Apostle Paul explained the gospel to Athenians.

The next day we walked on a section of a road built by the Romans in the ancient city of Corinth—a road on which Paul would have walked—at the end of which he stood while he was being accused by the city magistrates for causing a disturbance by preaching about Jesus.

The following day we sailed on the waters on which Paul sailed on his missionary journeys. A few days later we were in Ephesus and visited the amazing outdoor amphitheater where Paul would have undoubtedly been. Visiting these and other amazing ancient historical cities certainly made Paul’s missionary journeys and his writings (especially to the Corinthians and Ephesians) come alive as never before.

Our last day before returning home was spent in Istanbul—the city where east meets west. Besides visiting fascinating places and magnificent ancient buildings, it was a weird sensation to hear the extremely loud Muslim call to prayer starting at 5:40 AM sunrise! The chanting sound gave me cold chills especially in light of atrocities committed by radical Muslims in recent times. Could you imagine the outcry if Christians had the same kind of extremely loud calls to prayer five times a day in America? The anti-God and politically correct crowds would howl us into silence!

To be continued ….

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for the historical evidence authenticating your Word, the Bible, as found in the ‘cradle of Christianity’ where your early disciples taught and preached the gospel message. Help me to grasp in my heart and mind the reality of your Word and the impact on the world that the gospel has made over the past two millenniums. May it truly impact my heart and life as well. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Acts 17:22

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“And He [Jesus] said to them, Go into all the world and preach and publish openly the good news (the Gospel) to every creature [of the whole human race].”¹

I vividly recall how, when visiting the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC—a profoundly sobering experience—how deeply I was moved when reading the words credited by some (but disputed by others) to Martin Niemöller:

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

The plan to kill Jews today may be even more destructive than in the Holocaust. I say this because President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran has expressed doubt that the Holocaust ever happened.² He has also declared openly that he wants Israel wiped off the map, and it appears that in the not too distant future he will have nuclear weapons—a frightening thought as an ever increasing number of extremist Muslims are determined to kill not only Jews, but Christians, Americans and other Westerners, and pretty much all who refuse to convert to their evil form of radical religion. Their barbaric philosophy is “convert or have your head cut off.”

We Christians know that the only hope of the world is the saving gospel of Jesus Christ, but what will we Christians do about it? Will we again remain silent as so many did for so long during Hitler’s reign of terror? I was also horrified to learn that we Western countries refused to allow Jews to immigrate to our countries even when we knew what Hitler was doing. Consequently, six million Jews were sent to the death chambers.

According to a recent survey of Christians in America by the highly respected Barna Group, only 29% of Christians see the need to explain their faith with non-believers—which is down from 39% a year ago.³

Perhaps more than ever we need to take seriously Christ’s last commission to his disciples to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to everyone everywhere.” Never before has this been as possible as it is today.

May every one of us ask God daily to use us to be an effective witness for Jesus.

Also, please go to www.actsweb.org/announce.php for a very simple and non-threatening way to share God’s love and message of salvation with family, friends, and contacts. And please support in prayer and finances organizations that are actively involved in reaching people with the gospel message of Jesus Christ.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, I’m available. Please use me to be an effective witness for you and do all that I can to help spread the gospel around the world. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Jesus (Mark 16:15, AMP).
2. Reuters, Friday, December 9, 2005; Page A18. http://tinyurl.com/3x72lb
3. The Barna Update, http://tinyurl.com/27csc5

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