God Became a Man

 People have lots of ideas about what God is like. The Hindus says, “God must be loving, God is charity, and God is gentle. Therefore, "He must be a cow.” The American Indians, watching an eagle soar endlessly and majestically upon the wind currents, says, “God is an eagle.” The ancient Egyptians see the awesome power of the sun and say, “God is Ra, God is the sun.” Each culture speaks a partial truth, but all miss the total picture because they're blind. And so was all of humanity. So what did God do? God became a Man and dwelt among us in the Person of Jesus Christ.

THE CHILDREN'S BILL OF RIGHTS

My son came home from school one day, A smirk was on his face.

He'd decided he was smart enough To put me in my place.

MY SON SAID:

Guess what I learned in Civics Two, That's taught by Mr. Wright?

It's all about the laws today: THE CHILDREN'S BILL OF RIGHTS.

IT SAYS:

I don't have to clean my room, Don't have to cut my hair.

No one can tell me what to think, How to speak, or what to wear.

I have freedom FROM religion, And regardless what you say,

I don't have to bow my head, And I sure DON'T HAVE TO PRAY.

I can wear earrings if I want, And pierce my tongue & nose.

I can read & watch just what I like, Be tattooed from head to toes.

AND if you ever spank me, I'll charge you with the crime,

I'll back up all my charges, With the marks on my behind.

AND MY SON SAID:

Don't you ever touch me, This body's for MY use,

Not for your hugs and kisses, That's just more child abuse.

HE CONTINUED WITH:

Don't preach about your morals, Like your mama did to you.

That's nothing but your mind control, And it's illegal too!

Mom, I have these children's rights, So you can't influence me,

Or I'll call Children's Services, Better known as C.S.D.

MY TURN!

Well, of course, my natural instinct Was to toss him out the door.

But the chance to teach a lesson, Made me think a little more.

I mulled it over carefully, I couldn't let this go.

A little smile crept to my face... He was messing with a pro!

AND AWAY WE GO!

Next day I took him shopping, At the local Good Will store,

I told him, "pick out all you want! There are shirts & pants galore."

I've called and checked with C.S.D., They said they didn't care,

If I bought you K-Mart shoes, Instead of Nike Airs.

OH! And...

I've canceled that appointment To take your driver's test.

The C.S.D. is unconcerned, So I'll decide what's best.

I SAID:

No time to stop and eat, Or pick up stuff to munch,

And tomorrow you can start to learn To make your own sack lunch.

Just save that raging appetite, And wait 'til dinner time.

We're having liver and onions. It's a favorite dish of mine.

He ASKED:

Can we stop to rent a movie, So I can watch the VCR?

Sorry, I said, I sold your TV, For new tires on my car.

I also rented out your room, You can take the couch instead.

The C.S.D. requires just a roof above your head.

Your clothing won't be trendy now, I'll choose the food we eat,

That allowance that you used to get Will buy me something neat.

I'm selling off your jet ski, Dirt-bike & roller blades.

Check out the PARENTS' BILL OF RIGHTS, It's in effect today! 

Hey, Hot Shot, are you crying? Why are you on your knees?

Are you asking God to help you? ....GO CALL THE C.S.D

Share this one with some Moms & Dads you know....or better yet some kids!!!

THE MODESTO MANIFESTO

Perhaps no other leading church figure of the past 50 years commands as much

admiration and respect from both the Christian and non-Christian world as does the Rev.

Billy Graham. While he has suffered some criticism over the years, no scandals have

rocked his ministry - and it has been intensely scrutinized.

One of the major reasons Reverend Graham and his associates have avoided pitfalls and

scandal goes back to November of 1948 and what took place in a hotel room in Modesto,

California. It was there The Modesto Manifesto was birthed.

Graham and his associates, Bev Shea, Grady Wilson, and Cliff Barrows, were just

starting to get involved in evangelistic meetings. At the time, many traveling evangelists

were crossing the country.

 And a number fell to scandals - moral, ethical and financial.

In a desire to see their ministry remain above scandal, the men met to discuss the

problems evangelists faced. They came up with four problems to avoid and ways to

avoid them.

1. Money

It was common practice among evangelists to put a lot of emotion and flourish into

taking love offerings. This could bring unnecessary criticism - and temptation. The men

vowed not to emphasize the offering. To avoid criticism they would always have the

local campaign committees oversee the offerings and disbursements of funds - they

would accept a straight salary regardless of how high the offerings were.

2. Immorality

Religious leaders especially those who traveled were regularly falling to this temptation.

The men agreed continually to pray for God to guard them from it. They also set up

some rules to follow. They would never allow themselves to be alone with women -

lunches, counseling sessions, or rides to auditoriums or airports. And they would always

get their hotel rooms close together as another safeguard.

3. Exaggeration

The phrase evangelistically speaking has been coined to label exaggerated figures of the

number attending meetings or the number saved. The men vowed not to fall to this

practice. If numbers were mentioned they were the ones generated by the local police,

fire departments, or arena managers.

4. Criticism

Often evangelists would criticize local pastors and churches from pulpits. The men

vowed not to do this, nor would they ever criticize pastors who openly criticized them.

(Discipleship Journal, Issue 84, Nov/Dec 1994, Page 45)

Dr. Norman Geisler on knowing the truth about God.

Dr. Norman Geisler – But there is no way to recognize error unless we know the truth: counterfeits cannot be detected unless we know the genuine article.  Likewise, there is no way to determine what is false about God unless we know what is true about Him.