You matter.

For as long as I can remember, I have struggled with the thought that my existence was meaningless. What could a broken, misled, rebellious runaway ever be worth? Those thoughts led me to believe that God could never care about what happened to me. You can only imagine how a person lives when they think the God of the universe forgot about them. 

Here is the beautiful truth, friend. I know it now and how I wish I had known it then! God knows you. You matter to Him. In fact, you are so precious to Him that not only did He die for you in the most humiliating way, but He is coming back after He has prepared a wonderful place for you in His kingdom. He says you're worth it. You're worth dying for.

Psalm 139:13-16 

For You formed my inward parts;

You wove me in my mother’s womb. 

I will give thanks to You, 

for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Wonderful are Your works,

And my soul knows it very well. 

My frame was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; 

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;

And in Your book were all written

The days that were ordained for me,

When as yet there was not one of them. 

God created you. Everything and everyone, but specifically, He created you. You matter. He carefully planned all your days before you were born and knit you together Himself in your mother's womb. No matter the circumstances of that conception, your life now or your past, God knows you. He is in control. He has wonderful and awesome plans for each one of us. Each one. You. 

Your life doesn't disqualify you. In fact, you are qualified because of the life God planned for you. 

Do you think you are too broken? Look at Rahab. A prostitute redeemed and rewarded because she feared The Lord and was a part of the heritage of our Savior. 

Do you think you have turned your back on God too many times? Look at Peter. The one who denied Christ and ended up leading many to Him. 

Do you think you are too young? Look at David. A youth who ended up slaying a giant and a king Israel would not soon forget. 

Do you think you are too weak? Look at Gideon. The least of his family and yet trusted God, yielding mighty results in battle. 

God is calling you. And when God calls, He qualifies. He knows you and you do matter. Every part matters. Whether you are called to stay at home and raise your family or to travel around the world as a missionary, you are called. Will you listen?

Will you listen to the God who made you, has cared for you, planned your days before they existed and knows your innermost being? 

You matter to Him. You always have. You always will. He says you are worth it. 

Don't be misled!

I sincerely hope what I am about to tell you truly is the result of irresponsible journalism and a misunderstanding. However, I cannot sit idly by while this is out there. 

The pope said in a recent interview that you don't have to believe in God to go to heaven. You only have to follow your conscience. The interview has been removed from the Vatican website. 

http://www.ncregister.com/blog/edward-pentin/scalfari-interview-taken-down-from-vatican-website?nomobile=1

Apparently it was all a big misunderstanding? That's oddly convenient...

Then in the interview he says this:

“Proselytism is solemn nonsense, it makes no sense. We need to get to know each other, listen to each other and improve our knowledge of the world around us. Sometimes after a meeting I want to arrange another one because new ideas are born and I discover new needs. This is important: to get to know people, listen, expand the circle of ideas. The world is crisscrossed by roads that come closer together and move apart, but the important thing is that they lead towards the Good.”

So it is not surprising that this is his view on how to be saved:

“Agape, the love of each one of us for the other, from the closest to the furthest, is in fact the only way that Jesus has given us to find the way of salvation and of the Beatitudes.”

Here's the link to the interview: 

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/4023659/

He ends by saying the Church is feminine. 

I implore you to seek the truth. Trusting in Jesus and His finished work on the cross is the only way to be saved from paying the price for your sins. Nothing we can do other than trust in Jesus will ever earn us a place in heaven. Not good works, being a good person and certainly not following your conscience. Please pass this along!

The truth about salvation: 

It is a free gift from God. For more information, call me or visit this site. 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/about/becoming_a_christian.aspx

Defend Religious Liberty and Protect the First Amendment!

There is an ordinance before the San Antonio, TX City Council that could prevent individuals from exercising their faith. The ordinance is adding "gender identity" and "sexual orientation" to protected status. This would mean that churches would be forced to marry same sex couples, transgender individuals would be allowed to expose themselves in any public restroom and denies our first amendment rights. This means that police officers would have to stand by and allow young children in public restrooms be exposed to sick individuals who prey on the innocent.

Read the entire ordinance and it's major problems here: http://sahumanrightscoalition.com/

If you are in SA, please defend religious freedom on August 28 at 2 pm at City Hall. This ordinance would discriminate against churches, foster and adoptive parents/agencies, businesses and individuals. It puts our children in danger and attacks The First Amendment. Please make your voices heard just by showing up and showing your support for the opposition of the ordinance before City Council. Help by showing up in full force and wear blue!

If you are not in SA, please pray that hearts and minds will be changed in regards to this ordinance! This is not a church vs. gays issue. This is a first amendment issue! In other cities where ordinances like this have passed, societal discord has ensued.

Thankfully, district 9's Elisa Chan is adamantly opposed to the ordinance. Not even all of them were there for the town hall meeting this Wednesday so not all of them heard what the people have to say! So the phone calls and letters count!

Some of Elisa Chan's points (there are many more):
1) The ordinance is against freedom of speech.
2) The ordinance tramples on freedom of religion.
3) The ordinance would be costly for businesses who violate it based on faith or customer safety. (First violation- $500 fine + class C misdemeanor)
4) The ordinance will be costly for the city in terms of litigation.
5) The ordinance will be costly to businesses if a third bathroom has to be installed for the "transgendered" population.
6) The ordinance will cost the city in police forces better utilized elsewhere in order to enforce the issues arising from the ordinance.
7) The ordinance will cause safety hazards to women and children using women's restrooms and fitting rooms.
The ordinance will avail "sick men" who want to prey upon women the opportunity to do so at will, under the law.
9) The ordinance will cost millions of dollars to install third bathrooms for "transgendered" in all existing and new city buildings. (Including schools, libraries, parks, etc.)
10) The ordinance will put business people in a place to have to violate their religious beliefs.

This is what we are up against if the ordinance passes.

http://therightscoop.com/wa-state-college-allows-transgender-man-to-expose-himself-to-young-girls/

Proverbs 1:20-33

Wisdom Warns

²⁰ Wisdom shouts in the street,
She ^[f]lifts her voice in the square;
²¹ At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings:
²² “How long, O ^[g]naive ones, will you love ^[h]being simple-minded?
And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools hate knowledge?
²³ “Turn to my reproof,
Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
²⁴ “Because I called and you refused,
I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
²⁵ And you neglected all my counsel
And did not want my reproof;
²⁶ I will also laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your dread comes,
²⁷ When your dread comes like a storm
And your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
²⁸ “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,
²⁹ Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
³⁰ “They would not accept my counsel,
They spurned all my reproof.
³¹ “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way
And be satiated with their own devices.
³² “For the waywardness of the ^[i]naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
³³ “But he who listens to me shall ^[j]live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

Sharing the Gospel in a "Coexist" World

Of late, my friendships with non-Christian friends has been threatened by my simple invitations to attend church with me or my invitations to talk about Jesus. Nothing more and nothing less. A simple invitation.

I'm sure you have all seen the "Coexist" bumper stickers. The notion sounds wonderful. Religious tolerance. But what does that really mean? Does that mean that Christians are meant to tolerate sin? Does it also mean that the ones preaching tolerance should also be tolerant of Christian beliefs? What about the Christian belief in evangelism? I have found that many people stay in the comfort of tolerance so they don't have to do the uncomfortable thing we are really called to do.

Mark 16:15 "And He said to them, 'Go into all the world  and preach the gospel to all creation.'"

I don't see any ifs ands or buts in that instruction. The Bible is very clear about who we are meant to be and what we are meant to do. The Bible also talks about the people we will come into contact with.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 "But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these."

I'm not saying that we should not be friends with non-Christians. However, what Paul warns Timothy of sounds a lot like what we are going through as a culture. When people hold to a "form of godliness" but deny its power, doesn't that sound a lot like the people that ascribe to Agnostic ways of thinking? I have a few friends that fall in that department and who have become more and more resistant to talking about my faith. They preach tolerance but scoff at Christianity. If they were truly tolerant, they would tolerate evangelism as well, would they not? My heart breaks thinking that these people are so hard of heart that they will not even be curious about my faith when I am so willing to share it. Time and time again, my feelings are hurt when I am denied the chance to even talk about how wonderful Jesus is. However, I must be bold in the face of these trials.

Friendship is wonderful, but a friend who is not a Christian can dampen your spirit. I'm willing to "be the bad guy" as they see it and sacrifice my friendship if it means speaking the Truth. If it is God's will, it is well with my soul. I will continue to show love and attempt to live as Jesus did.

Matthew 5:16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."

God never promised that we would be accepted and loved and appreciated and glorified here on Earth. In fact, He promised the opposite. We will be persecuted, judged and suffer for the name of Jesus. Paul was frequently imprisoned, stoned, beaten and run quite literally out of town for his ministry. Yet he found joy in knowing that his reward would be great in heaven. Pour your heart out for the non-believers (including your non-Christian friends) so that you can fulfill your mission on Earth. They may abandon you and continue in the ways of the world. Never stop praying for them. We are to take the road not taken. Our instructions are clear.

Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

We may not have much company in our mission to bring the Truth to this world, but we will reap the rewards in heaven for doing so. Don't lose heart, my friends.