Chaos On The Hill

I got home late from work. While we were relaxing in the big room, after having eaten pizza, we heard a ruckus outside, so I went toward the front door to investigate. Immediately, my son said, "no dad, don't go out there." "I'm only going to see what's going on", I said. But there was something going on; a large group of teens, many of whom I had spoken with before were walking around the corner, and down the hill, on our street. As I watched, one young man began to pee on the neighbor's lawn. Again, my son said, "don't go down there dad." He was insistent, but I said, "I have to." He said, "just call the police." I said, "Okay, I'll call the police, bring me the phone." I called 911, and reported drunk and disorderly to my address, and they said they would send someone right out.

I grabbed a stack of tracks, and the mp3 player and a camera, so I could record what took place. As I walked down toward the group of teens, one whom I had witnessed to last week, was pushing Quincy around. Some other teens split them up, and I said hi to Quincy, and told him he ought to go home. Kyle said something to me, and I began to relate to him how I was so sad the other day, seeing him so high that he couldn't talk. He went ballistic. I don't quite understand why. I asked him if he remembered me praying for him, he didn't even remember. At some point, he said something about the police, and I responded, "They've already been called."

The extremely drunk one, who was belligerent to everyone came up to me and said "preacher man, go away, no one wants to listen to you." This drunk guy was a tall young man, who earlier in the week when I witnessed to him, although he was quiet, was resistant to the Gospel. Now was downright antagonistic; even threatening. "The cops have been called", I said.

I went around to each of the kids, who I hadn't witnessed to before, and handed them tracts. I tried to witness to Ashley, but the tall antagonistic kid, pulled her away, and said, "don't listen to him."

There was a girl sitting on a guy's lap in the car that was parked there, and they were making out in a very lewd and lascivious manner. I handed him a tract, and then said "Here young lady, have you gotten one of these yet?" She took it. I believe they separated at that point, I didn't want to hang around and find out what was really taking place in the front seat of that car.

Then I began to speak with a girl named "Angie?" and handed her a tract. I asked her if I could share the Gospel with her, and if she had a Christian background. She proceeded to tell me how she believed in God and had a relationship with God and had asked Jesus Christ into her heart. I asked her if she was going to heaven when she died. She said yes, and I asked how she new that. On what basis will you go to heaven, I asked, but she didn't get what I was asking. I said, "Would you consider yourself to be a good person?". She said yes. I went through lying, and although she admitted to having lied, she wouldn't call herself a liar. I asked about stealing, and she admitted she had, but wouldn't call herself a thief; I helped her out. I asked her if she had lusted, she came unglued and called me a child abuser, and pervert. I said, well you've admitted to being a liar and a thief, and she was ready to tear me apart. I said, "Have you ever hated? because Jesus, the one you said you believed in, said hate was the same as murder. " She said, "I'm going to kill you." Someone, I think Quincy grabbed her and pulled her away.

Kyle and the tall angry kid, were totally blaspheming and denegrating our LORD. At this point, Kyle saw that I was carrying the mp3 player, and he said "Oh no, no you don't, no way..." He grabbed it out of my hand and pulled the battery out of it. Too bad for him, that didn't delete what was already recorded.

Then the tall angry kid, started in on me, and told me how he was going to break my glasses. I told him I wouldn't fight back, no matter what he did. He just ranted and raved at me. All the while, un-beknownst to me, my wife and boys were standing in my yard with baseball bats in their hands. Anyways, the LORD protected me, and "Perfect love casts out all fear", in my wife and boy's case.

I started to read John chapter 3 aloud, and after a few verses, the police showed up.

No one was arrested, but parents were called. Sadly though, some of the parents either couldn't be reached, or others were indeed at parties -- probably drunk themselves, so several of the kids had to be taken home by the police.

VERY DISCONCERTING... Especially, when the kids were trying to blame the whole thing on me preaching at them, and the cops said, "you were probably part of the problem. Please leave."

God bless...

Giving a Ride Home -- Telling About the Way Home

Last week, I had a couple of opportunities to give my son's friends rides home. During both rides, I told Steven and later Cody about the "Way" home. How to have eternal life. They both listened and seemed only slightly put out in talking with me.

God give us opportunities... We need to take them.

Pray up, Step Up, Speak Up.

God bless...

The Green-Belt Trailhead is an Attractive Parking Spot

Travis and Tim were sitting in their Honda which was parked next to the green-belt trailhead. I offered them Million Dollar bills and started a conversation with them. I told them that the bills were Gospel tracts, and asked if they knew what that was. They said no, so I explained the Gospel to them. They listened and were very interactive. Tim wasn't concerned enough to say he was planning on getting right with God. Travis seemed to take it all in, but I didn't perceive he was going to make any commitments either.

Therhan and his girlfriend were sitting in their Impala which was parked next to the green-belt trail head. I gave them each Million Dollar bills and was ableto share the Bad and Good News with them.

May the LORD continue to bring people literally to my backyard so that I can share the Bad News that we have all broken God's Law, and the Good News of the "fine being paid".

God bless...

OA At the Well

Good morning folks. May I have your attention; I'd like to speak to you for a few moments. Bearing in mind that at last count almost 2500 American soldiers, our own men and women have given their lives in Iraq to protect our freedom of speech, what I have to say may offend some of you. That isn't my intention, but this message is so important I’m willing to risk your objection.

Imaging this scenario; you are driving across the desert and your car breaks down. You’re stranded in the middle of the desert; Death Valley, California. The temperature is a blistering 118 degrees. You have one sip of water left in your canteen. You’re so thirsty, you’re beginning to hallucinate and see mirages of water on the horizon. Water is essential for the proper functioning of body and mind. The adverse effects of even mild dehydration, as little as 5 to 10% are insidious and extremely dangerous in a survival situation. You could survive weeks without food, but only days without water.

Now, come back to reality. You are here to fill your drinking water bottles. Water is vital to life. We all want to take care of ourselves, and live a long and healthy life, but the truth is, we all have to die someday. Its true, ten out of ten people die. It’s the ultimate statistic. The Bible says we all have an appointment with death, and after that comes the judgment. So after we die, we will stand before God and give an account for everything we’ve done during this lifetime. The Bible says, “Everything is laid open and bare to the eyes of Him to whom we have to do.” Not only does He know what you’ve done, but every word you’ve said, even every though that has crossed your mind.

If you would, take the time to examine yourself in light of the Ten Commandments, and see how you’ll do on Judgment Day. Would you consider yourself to be a good person? The Bible says that God has appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness. Let’s look at ourselves in the mirror of the Ten Commandments, and with a tender conscience, see where we’ll stand on that day. The ninth commandment says, “You shall not lie.” Have you ever told a lie, a fib, a half truth or ever been intentionally deceitful to anyone? That would make you a liar. The eighth commandment is “You shall not steal.” Have you ever taken anything that didn’t belong to you? If I took a dollar or a hundred dollars, I’d still be a thief. The third commandment is “You shall not use the name of the LORD your God in vain.” Have you ever said God or used the name Jesus Christ to punctuate a sentence? If you have that’s called blasphemy and it is a very serious offense in God’s eyes. You’ve taken then name of God, who is holy, and made that name worthless. And the seventh commandment, you shall not commit adultery. By definition, adultery is when you cheat on your husband or wife, but Jesus said if you even so much as look at another person to lust after them sexually, that you have committed adultery already with that person in your heart.

So if you will listen to your conscience and you’ve admitted to breaking these four of the Ten Commandments, then by your own admission, you are a lying, thieving, blasphemous, adulterer at heart. When you stand before God on Judgment Day, you will be guilty. Remember, God sees your secret sins, everything you thought was hidden, God saw as though it was done in the light of day. And if you are honest with yourself, and you’ve admitted guilt, do you think you would deserve heaven or hell? Don’t be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor thieves will inherit the kingdom of God. The Bible says all liars will have their place in the lake of fire.

You may say, well, I am sorry for my sins, but being sorry won’t help you on Judgment Day. You should be sorry, you have a conscience. Even if you confess your sins to God, and promise never to do those things again, that still doesn’t take away the fact that you did commit those sins. The Bible says that God is a Just Judge, and a just or honest or good judge won’t release a confessed criminal, because the law demands a penalty for the convicted criminal. There is a punishment that fits the crime, and our law-breaking was against an eternal God, so the sentence is an eternal sentence. It’s called hell, and I don’t want that for you and God certainly doesn’t want that for you. The Bible says God is not willing that any should perish.

If you were in a courtroom, and you were found guilty of four serious crimes; all the evidence was in, you even admitted your guilt. The judge set your sentence at One Million dollars, but you didn’t have two nickels to rub together. They were about to put you away for a long time, when someone you don’t even know came into the courtroom, and said, “Judge, I’ve sold everything I own, this person is my friend, I love him or her, I’ll pay the fine for them.” How would you feel toward that person who paid your fine for you? You’d be extremely grateful wouldn’t you? Well, 2000 years ago, God Himself entered the courtroom of heaven and paid the fine for your sins. God became a man in Jesus Christ. Jesus was born of a virgin, made of a woman. Jesus is the only one who has ever lived a perfect, sinless life. He never once violated any of God’s laws. But they crucified him. They nailed him to a cross where He bled and died a horrible death. He didn’t deserve to be killed. Even Pilate, who sentenced Him to death, said Jesus was guilty of no crime. After Jesus died, they took his body down off the cross and buried Him in a tomb. They rolled a huge stone over the entrance to the tomb, but three days later Jesus rose from the dead, and came back to life, and defeated death.

This is where forgiveness is found, and where God’s mercy is displayed, because Jesus died on the cross to pay our fine. We did the crime, and Jesus paid our fine. You can choose to accept that payment on your behalf. To do so requires you to respond by taking two steps. First, the Bible says, unless you repent, you will not see the kingdom of heaven. Repent is just Bible talk for change your mind. It is the idea of making a 180 degree turn away from your sins, and turn to God for mercy. Don’t just confess your sins, confess and forsake them. The Bible says, “Godly sorry works repentance to salvation.” Step two is to trust in Jesus Christ and His death and resurrection as sufficient payment for your sins. Don’t just believe in Jesus; the Bible says even the demons believe and tremble. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone to save you. Don’t trust in your own goodness, remember the Ten Commandments. You’re not a good person; you’re like the rest of us. The Bible says that “only God is good.” The Bible also says, “All of our righteousness is like filthy rags in God’s sight.” So simply repent and trust in Jesus Christ.

Let me leave you with this story. If medical science was able to develop and perfect the capability to perform eye transplants; and if the laws were changed so that you could sell your eyes; would you sell your eyes for even a million dollars? What if you could get a billion dollars for your eyes? I doubt that any sane person would sell their eyes, even for all the money in the world. You say, “With all that money I could see the world.” Ah, ah, no you couldn’t, you’d be blind. You wouldn’t sell your eyes because they are precious to you; how much more precious is your soul that looks out through those eyes. The Bible puts it this way, “If your eye causes you to sin, it would be better for you to pluck it out and throw it away, for it is better for you to enter into eternal life missing an eye, than for the your whole body to be cast into hell.”

This topic is so important. Don’t let another day pass by without getting right with God. None of us know the day of our death. We aren’t guaranteed anything more than the air that is in our lungs right now. Please take the time to get alone with God, before you go to bed tonight, and cry out to Him for mercy and trust in Jesus Christ for salvation. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Whoever drinks of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinks of the water that Jesus gives will never thirst; the water that Jesus gives will be in you a well of water springing up into everlasting life.