Resolution

This weekend a new Christian movie is coming out called "Courageous", the movie is by the Church which made "Facing the Giants" and "Fireproof." If you have not heard or seen a preview here it is...

In the movie, four policemen through a tragedy pledge to become better fathers and husbands. In order to hold each other accountable they write a "Resolution" and all sign it. I was inspired by this to write a my own "resolution" to my spouse. Below is my "Resolution".

• I resolve to be the spiritual leader in our house.
• I resolve to read through books of the Bible with my spouse and pray together five times a week.
• I resolve to serve God with my spouse.
• I resolve to work hard in order to put food on the table and a roof over our head.
• I resolve to shut off social media and stop doing homework from 3:00-6:00pm in order to spend time with my wife.
• I resolve to prioritize my wife over school, work, friends, and other activities.
• I resolve to pamper my wife with back rubs and massages at least four times a month.
• I resolve to NEVER look at porn or lustfully at another woman.
• I resolve to date my wife at least once a week.
• I resolve to stop attempting to solve problems and rather listen to my wife.
• I resolve to watch only two sporting events per weekend in order to spend more time with my wife.
• I resolve to make my wife's lunch everyday that she goes to work.
• I resolve to be the servant leader in our house and lead her with lion-hearted and lamb-like devotion

Through His Blood,

T. Welch

I leave you with two challenges: 1) Go and see the new movie "Courageous" this weekend and 2) Take time this week and write your own resolution. Are you man enough?

Hold the Rope

Hold the Ropes: The Story of William Carey
by Chad Roberts 
1/04/2010 / Missions

William Carey was a shoemaker in England in the mid 1700's. Even though he was not a missionary, his heart broke for missions and the dying people of the world. He kept a map of the world on the wall in front of his work bench that as he made and repaired shoes, he would weep over the world and for the Gospel that could save the world!

In a meeting with the missionary society in London, the leaders asked, "Who will go down to the Heathen and take them the Gospel?"

Carey spoke up and said, "I will go...but you must hold the rope for me!"

Carey's wife just could not bring herself to move to India. They had 5 children and the youngest was a baby. As difficult as the decision was, Carey decided to take his oldest son and go to India hoping that his wife could join him soon. God moved in her heart and she decided to go.

Once they arrived after the 5 month voyage, life became difficult. Their baby died. Because the Hindu's would not touch a foreign infant that had died, William had to bury his dead baby with his own hands in the midst of such terrible grief.

For 7 years, William labored among the Hindu's before he saw his first convert. After all that time, he led a Hindu to Christ and that man went on to preach to his own people for over 20 years! Carey continued to labor in Bible translation.

After 40 years of labor, William Carey died with a legacy to world missions that few have ever matched. He is most known for his motto, "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God!"

We call him the "Father of Modern Missions" and for centuries, he has influenced countless generations to forsake all for the glorious gospel. Although he saw very little fruit in the beginning of his ministry, before he died, he saw 212,000 copies of the Bible he had translated reach 300 million people in over 40 different Indian dialects.

Praise God for William Carey and for the struggles he overcame that not only India would know Christ, but that his influence for the Glory of God would remain with the Body of Christ for centuries!

Therefore, my encouragement to all you who know missionaries, to all those who meet missionaries that come speak in your churches..."Hold the Rope" for them! 


If you would like to "hold the rope" for Julia and I please send me a private message with your e-mail and I will add you to our prayer list. Thank you!

Help for addicts:

Do you struggle with porn? Are you tired of losing this battle? If so, here are ten ways which may help you achieve victory over pornography.

10. Pray to God. Ask Him to change your heart and turn your affections from pornography to Him. Jesus Christ is the ONLY one who can give you victory over this. NOTHING ELSE WILL WORK! Trust me I have tried it all. Pray and ask God for help.

9. Admit you have a problem looking at pornography.
                   a. Looking at pornography is not “macho guy” behavior. It is wrong and you are ruining your life by looking.


8. If you do not know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you will NEVER beat porn.                  a. Without Christ all I knew was sin, all I could do was sin, all I did was sin. When I trusted in Christ I was set free from the power of sin and able to fight my sin.


7. Once/If you know Jesus Christ you have the power to defeat sin, confess your sin to God and ask Him for help.
                  a. Romans 8:12-13

6. Get serious in your desire to beat porn.                 
                 a. Motivational video; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4lwYRUwDRMb. 
                 b.Helpful sermon series; How to kill sin by John Piper: http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/how-to-kill-sin-part-1,http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/how-to-kill-sin-part-2,http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/how-to-kill-sin-part-3.

5. Get an accountability partner
                a. Make sure your accountability partner is someone of the same sex.
                b. Make sure your accountability partner is not also struggling with porn. Trust me you will just bring each other down and give license to sin.
               c. Make sure your accountability partner will ask you the tough questions and stay on you.

4. Download software which will let others know which sites you have been on.
               a. I use X3 Watch: http://x3watch.com/


3. Memorize Scripture
               a. Start with Job 31:1, “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully on a woman.”
               b. After that begin memorizing Romans 8, take a verse a week. This chapter has helped me tremendously

2. Know your triggers and then avoid them. Do you look at porn more when you’re tired, hungry, stressed, not in the Bible? When do you look at porn? Find out when these times are and avoid them.
               a. For me I know that I am most tempted when I am tired and stressed therefore, during these times I stay off of the computer when I am alone.

1. Remember there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. If you know Jesus Christ and you mess up, remember God still loves you, your salvation is not at stake here, ask for forgiveness, get up and move on. Once you fall down, do not stay down, get up with the power of the Holy Spirit and continue to move forward.

Does Calvinism Hinder Evangelism?

The short answer (to the title of this post) is: it shouldn’t. In fact, Calvinism, properly conceived, is a great motivator to share the good news of salvation with the lost. But I understand it doesn’t seem like that at first blush.

“If God is decisive in salvation, then why bother presenting the gospel? I mean, if they’re elect they will come to Jesus somehow, with or without me. And if they aren’t elect why bother in the first place?”

This objection makes some logical sense, but it is not biblical logic. The Bible has no problem joining the absolute sovereignty of God with a zeal for evangelism. For example, in Romans 9, where Paul declares “God will have compassion on whom he has compassion and harden whom he hardens,” Paul first says in verse 1: “I am speaking the truth in Christ–I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit–that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.” He believed in election and his heart broke for the lost.

Same thing in Romans 10: “Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.” Wait a minute, is this the same Paul who quoted “Jacob I have loved and Esau I have hated?” Of course it is. Paul was passionate about God’s right to choose whomever he wishes and he was also passionate about winning the lost.

In fact, election helps spur on faithful mission and evangelism. That’s not to say that Calvinists haven’t misused election in the past to excuse inactivity, but that’s not what election did for Paul. When Paul was in Corinth and had it up to here with those rascals and was ready to get out of Dodge, do you know what kept him there? Acts 18:9-11 says, “The Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: ‘Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.’ So Paul stayed for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.” A strong belief in God’s sovereignty is what will keep a missionary on the field when there seems to be no harvest. As Paul said to Timothy, “I endure everything for the sake of the elect” (2 Tim. 2:10).

God can work without means, or contrary to means, but he usually works through means; which means…he uses us. If you get in a bad car accident, God could save you by angelic intervention, or he could save you by a miracle when you should have been dead, but he can also save you with your seat belt. God uses means to achieve his purposes, and evangelism (and prayer for that matter) is one of those means.

God ordained proclamation to accomplish his purposes. We share the gospel out of joyful obedience, and in hope that the God who appoints the end also ordains the means. Someone asked Spurgeon once, “Why do you preach if you believe in election?” His response: “Because the elect don’t have yellow stripes down their back.” In other words, we don’t whom the elect are, so we declare the gospel without discrimination, trusting that the sheep will recognize the master’s voice.

Actually, the only evangelistic hope we really have in a hard-hearted, disobedient world is that the Lord has elect sheep out there, wandering though they now may be, who will hear his voice when we open our mouths to speak on behalf of the Good Shepherd.