Dean Faces Bad News for Banning Good News

Dear Dean (Name Withheld):

I am writing today with some very bad news for you. It would appear that, by the end of the year, you may be removed from your position as Dean of Students at (University Name Withheld). But, first, let me share the Good News – that is, if you will promise not to prosecute me for it.

I used to be an atheist. When people tried to share the Gospel with me, I would hurl profanity at them. I would even use a word that begins with “f” and ends with “u-c-k.” (I’m not talking about “fire-truck,” by the way). The Gospel offended me, so I told people to take a hike whenever they tried to share it with me. Now that I have converted, I no longer suffer from that kind of extreme emotional insecurity. And that is Good News. Now it’s time for the bad news.

Recently, a student at your university tried to share the Gospel with another student at your university. That makes sense. You do work at a Christian University. But then three things happened that made little sense. I will present them in chronological order – and in order from the least to most ridiculous event:

1. The student who was hearing the Gospel told the one sharing the Gospel that it was “offensive.” Of course, the Gospel has always been offensive. They would not have nailed Jesus to a cross if it were not. Then, the student demanded that the sharer of the Good News end the conversation. Fair enough. Maybe he was just having a bad day.

2. The next day, the still-offended student filed a speech code complaint over the Gospel sharing incident. The conduct he was engaged in, by the way, is considered sin by the Bible and “diversity” by the student handbook. At many “Christian” universities, the pages of the student handbook that deal with diversity carry more weight than the pages of the Bible that deal with sin. So the real sin is often using the word sin. And that is tantamount to banning the Gospel, which is the only means of dealing with sin – in part, because it confronts sin directly.  So you have a choice between the speech code and the Gospel – unless, of course, you were born with the speech code gene.

3. Finally, and most ridiculously, you actually took the complaint seriously and forced the student to stop sharing the Gospel unless someone specifically asked to hear it. The incident was isolated. There was no accusation of harassment. The offending student had no intention of speaking to the offended student again. But you had to permanently ban him from initiating conversations about salvation at a so-call Christian university. The more universities speak of tolerance, the more they reek of intolerance. The paradox is that you’ve demonstrated that principle with your indifference to principle.

But this is the last time you are ever going to silence a student who wishes to share the Gospel. By my count – I have been talking with and mentoring the “offending” student daily – you had approximately five meetings in which you threatened disciplinary action. At each one of these meetings you spoke. Each time you spoke, you offended the Gospel-sharing student. And, worse, now that other Christians are hearing of the incident, they are also offended and intimidated into silence. Put simply, they are now afraid to share the Gospel at your “Christian” university. One could say you are bullying them with the speech code. And you can’t defend yourself by saying this was an “isolated” incident. You prosecuted the Gospel-sharer based on an isolated incident. Remember?

So I have done what I must do. I have begun by organizing a series of five counter-claims against you – one for each time you spoke to the Gospel-sharing student. These five claims will come from five different students whose speech has been chilled by your conduct. They will all be delivered at once in the form of hate speech charges. In other words, you have used the speech code as a sword against others and now the sword is about to be taken from you. And it will be pointed directly toward your heart.  Unless you relinquish it voluntarily you will die by it.

Let me be very specific – even at risk of repeating myself: If you don’t get rid of the campus speech code within the next ten weeks we are coming after your job. That is only bad news if you do not repent of your sinfully censorious ways and allow students to share the Good News. As always, your fate depends upon your courage and willingness to do the right thing. It is my fervent prayer that you will learn from the example of your student-accusers. They are showing what it means to be bold in the face of emotional weakness masquerading as intellectual diversity.

You’ll be hearing from us soon,

Mike S. Adams

 

 

 

Tags: Christianity , Free Speech , Education , Freedom of religion

 

Mike Adams

Mike Adams is a criminology professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and author of Feminists Say the Darndest Things: A Politically Incorrect Professor Confronts “Womyn” On Campus.

http://townhall.com/columnists/mikeadams/2012/02/27/dean_faces_bad_news_for_banning_good_news/page/full/

Strangers in the Land

“‘To you I will give the land of Canaan
   as the portion you will inherit.’
 When they were but few in number,
   few indeed, and strangers in it,
they wandered from nation to nation,
   from one kingdom to another.”—Psalm 105:11–13

For thousands of years, since the Jews were expelled from their land by the Romans in 70 C.E., the people of God have, indeed, wandered from one nation to another. As they tried to settle, raise their families, and live according to God’s word and law, they remained strangers, often facing persecution, opposition, and hardships.

Even after two thousand years of exile from their homeland, the Jews were not accepted into the fabric of society. By the mid-1800s, Jewish thinkers came to the stark conclusion: “The Jews have lived and labored among the nations for almost two thousand years, but nonetheless they cannot become rooted organically within them . . . . We shall always remain strangers among nations.”

With the birth of the State of Israel, the long-held dream of the Jewish people returning to their homeland — the land given to them by God — became a reality. And since that time, more than three million Jews have returned to Israel.

But for many Jews today, the dream of returning to the Holy Land has remained just that — a dream. That is why The Fellowship and our partner organizations, like the Jewish Agency for Israel, have worked tirelessly over the years to bring persecuted Jews home from the four corners of the world.

For the next two years, our focus will be on helping the final group of Ethiopian Jews make aliyah, or immigration to Israel. Despite centuries of anti-Semitism, physical destruction, land confiscation, and enslavement, these Jews have maintained their Jewish heritage and prayed for their return to Jerusalem.

The Ethiopian Jews have never lost hope that they will return home. They have tirelessly and continually held to God’s promise of the portion of land that they will inherit.

Miraculously, The Fellowship and our ministry partners have been given the privilege of helping fulfill this dream of coming home for thousands of Ethiopian Jews. Join us today in praying for the Ethiopian Jews and for the completion of this prophetic work which has been ongoing for the past twenty years.

With your prayers and support, these Jews will no longer be strangers, but will be home at last.

http://www.holylandmoments.org/devotionals/strangers-in-the-land-2

Remembering What Christ Has Done For You

Remembering What Christ Has Done For You.

In Need of a New Heart

In Need of a New Heart.

Find Out the State of Your Soul!

Find Out the State of Your Soul!.

Professing Christians, Awake! By Asahel Nettleton

     

“Now it is high time to awake out of sleep” (Rom. 13:11).

      The language of this text is borrowed from natural sleep, in which a person is in a great measure unaware of what is happening around him but life remains in the body. This condition is applied to Christians who have grown insensitive to divine things–they sleep, but life remains in their souls. In particular, the exhortation is for those who find themselves in a state of spiritual slumber to shake off their drowsiness and awake to spiritual realities.

      Signs of Spiritual Slumber

      1. Sleeping Christians allow personal ease to compete with spiritual duty. Religion is the great business of the Christian’s life. It imposes on him many responsibilities that are in painful opposition to his fleshly desires. However, to neglect spiritual duties for the sake of personal comfort is to indulge in spiritual slothfulness. Great care must be taken to fight this natural tendency toward laziness with regard to spiritual things. For this reason, the Scripture instructs Christians to encourage one another daily “lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:13).

Avoiding reproach is a common way Christians shirk their godly purpose in the world. It is easy to live quietly as long as you will not disturb your fellow sinner with a reminder of his sin. Ignoring the sinful behavior of others requires no effort, and thousands of professing Christians resign themselves to rest in a state of passivity. Whole churches often shut their mouths in silence in the name of charity or goodwill, but in so doing they actually display an awful indifference to the souls of men.

      2.Sleeping Christians are no longer deeply affected by divine things. In this frame of mind, it is no wonder that Christians regularly attend the house of God but soon forget the instruction they receive. Although they once saw the glory of God in the face of Christ, now they walk in darkness. Where once they were stirred by a deep sense of the worth of souls and could weep over perishing sinners, now they can endure the sight of transgressors almost without emotion.

      Their lack of interest in spiritual things is further manifested by their conversation. At one time, they spoke often of eternal matters, but now all their attention is engrossed with the world. They converse with ease about the temporal issues of life but have almost nothing to say about the great things of eternity. When they do speak of heavenly themes, it is in a dull and lifeless manner. The weight of eternal realities does not stir their soul, and thus they talk like a person in sleep.

      3. Sleeping Christians are reluctant to pray secretly. Prayer has been properly described as the breath of the Christian. When a Christian continues in a state of prayerlessness for a prolonged period, it is a sign that he is asleep. If not shortly awakened from this breathless state, it is reasonable to wonder whether such a person is actually spiritually dead.

 

2Motivations for Christians to Awake

      1.Consider the time. Gospel light has risen upon us, and those who do not open their eyes to this light will remain in eternal darkness and despair. How can you sleep when the light of heaven is shining upon you? It is no time for sleep, because the day of salvation is a day that will be witnessed for eternity. The great business of this day calls loudly for you to awake.

      Think, my brethren! Have you nothing to do for yourselves in preparation for eternity? Have you no sins to repent of and no evil propensities to mortify? Are your evidences of grace bright enough? Do you love God with all your heart? Are you perfectly conformed to God’s holy law? In short, are you willing to die as you are? If you have anything to do for yourselves, it is high time to awake out of sleep.

.Parents, consider your children. Are they all securely within the safety of the covenant? Do you pray with them and for them? Have you taught them that they are sinners in need of new birth? Are you urging them to remember their Creator in the days of their youth? Were you to depart with one of your children today, could you rest satisfied that you have done your duty? Have you not one more word of instruction, of counsel, or of warning for your children before you meet them at the bar of God? If so, then it is time for you to awaken to your duty to order your home.

      3.Consider the activity of unbelievers. The men of this world shame us by their conduct. They rise up early and sit up late. They plan and execute. Labor, fatigue, and hardship are nothing to them if they can but collect a little of this world before they leave it. They are laying up treasure on earth. And will you not be as earnest to lay up for yourselves treasure that will endure in heaven? Do you not feel reproved by their conduct to think that the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light?

      4.Consider the power of your enemy. My brethren, you are on the field of battle against the prince of darkness. The malice of evil legions is directed against the Redeemer’s kingdom in this world. Satan is already in possession of the hearts of all wicked men. While you sleep, he is sowing tares and destroying about us. Snares and temptations are laid thick around you, and unless you are awake, you will certainly be ignorant of his devices. I would blow the trumpet and sound the alarm: Cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light!

      5.Consider that sinners are perishing. Your life and example will contribute either to their salvation or to their destruction. It is a fact that one ungodly professor of Christianity does more to prevent the conversion of sinners than many infidels. Brethren, are heaven and hell mere fables? If they are eternal realities, how can you remain silent or indifferent about them? If there be one impenitent sinner among you who is in danger of going to that place of eternal torment, can you sleep? Come, then, you that know the Lord and keep not silent, “if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand” (Ezek. 33:8). There is a dreadful storm of divine wrath coming upon the world of the ungodly. Therefore, it is high time to awake from slumber because “their damnation slumbereth not” (2 Pet. 2:3).

      6.Consider the time that has already passed. How many months have you been asleep? How many years have you slept in God’s vineyard? Would you still continue sleeping away the day of salvation? With some, the sun has already passed its midway point and is now hastening its rapid descent. “Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light” (John 12:35). Delay not, for “the night cometh, when no man can work” (John 9:4).

      7.Consider the glorious future that awaits you. You who have long traversed the wilderness on your way to Zion, your struggles for eternal life will have an end. You who have long labored, prayed, and groaned to be delivered from the bondage of sin, “look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh” (Luke 21:28). This night you may wake up amid the song of angels, and a crown of glory may be placed on your head. Awake, then, and behold the glorious dawn of a bright new day!

      8.Finally, consider the great danger of being deceived. A genuine Christian can never sleep sound without being disturbed. He inevitably will become frightened and wake up alarmed about his own condition. However, there are those who remain sound asleep and live at ease in Zion. They neither weep for their sins nor rejoice in the glory of God. Their hope of heaven is really only a pleasant dream while meanwhile they sink further into spiritual deception.

      The Christian church is a net that gathers of every kind. Remember that ten virgins professed to be followers of Christ but only five were ready for the bridegroom. Many who now commune on earth will never meet in heaven. Many who now appear to us to be real Christians will, no doubt to our surprise, be found on the left hand of Christ, “for many are called, but few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14).

      Sadly, the sinner who has professed religion with a false hope can hardly be driven to give it up. However, it is far better to destroy such hope and for the person to conclude that he is lost than for him to awake too late. “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh . . . : lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping” (Mark 13:35-36). At midnight the cry will be made. Then there will be a great confusion, for thousands will be deceived. Therefore, “let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12).

      These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. (Rev. 3:1-3)

Ecclesiology for Kids by Gloria Furman

I want to find ways to discuss spiritual things with my kids in the mundane moments of life.

But so often I find myself sucked into the mundane and I miss the moment.

“Eat your lunch. Stay in your seat. Take that out of your ear. Take that out of her ear. Take that out of his ear. Ladies and gentleman, no more monkey business. Eat your lunch.” I sound like a ringmaster at a three-ring circus sometimes.

At the end of the day I wonder about the moments I missed to tell them about who God is and how the Bible is not about them and raise their sights to see the activity of the Lord in their lives. Then I cling to the gospel and remember God’s grace is sufficient for me in my weakness, praying that he would give me more opportunities.

Explaining the concept of franchising was one of those opportunities.

“They have Chili’s in America, too?!” my oldest daughter was baffled last summer when she saw the familiar red chili pepper logo as we drove around the States.

“My sweet, precious third-culture child,” I started, “Chili’s is from here. Chili’s goes where anyone is willing to franchise it.” And I explained what franchising is.

“Is church like a franchise?” she followed-up. What a good question! We talked about how franchising is similar to and yet different from church planting. But that’s another funny story for another day.

Back to the big word in the title of this post– Ecclesiology is a theological term that means the study of the church. It comes from a Greek word used to describe the church in the first century. The gist of it is the church is made up of people– not bricks, branches, mud, cement, marble, or wood.

One way to start talking about ecclesiology with your kids is to introduce them to this very simple concept– the church is made up of people. Those people, to be specific, are God’s adopted children who were once prodigal but have now been given all the rights of sons and daughters in the Father’s family through the sacrifice of the “true and better older brother” Jesus Christ.

Tell your kids the church is not a physical building, but a people built by God’s own hands who he is gathering together as a show of his glory. Remind them when you ride in the car, tube, taxi, mutatu, bus, bajaj, subway, or whichever transport you use on your way to gather corporately with your local church.

Just the brief explanation, “We’re going to worship together with the church,” helps remind your kids of the purpose and nature of the church.

This little sentence has helped our family a lot because our local church meets in hotel ballrooms that are attached to shopping malls. This comes with all kinds of interesting questions. My kids know that when they walk out of the ballroom they can go down the escalator to the food court. Walk a little further and there’s Chili’s.

Back to the car ride where my oldest daughter noticed the franchised Chili’s in the States. She looked out the window and asked, “So where does the church meet that eats at this Chili’s?”

http://www.domestickingdom.com/2012/02/26/ecclesiology-for-kids/

Short Suffering Friends

Short Suffering Friends.

Dying to Meet Him: Sleepless Nights, a Blessing in Disguise By Gabrielle Devenish

Gabrielle “Elle” Devenish, a 30-year-old single Christian woman, was told by doctors that she has 6 months to a year to live.

“My heart, lungs, bones and muscles have all deteriorated beyond repair, according to doctors. My white blood cell count continues to match that of a last-stage chemo patient and my electrolytes are always on the edge.”

For Elle’s full Bio, click here.

Meditations in the Night Watches
Written February 26, 2012

Again, I must relate to David in the Psalms as I write this entry. “I meditate on You in the night watches.” (Ps. 63:6)

Lately, I’ve been having the worst trouble sleeping – lots of stomach pains, headaches, hot/cold spells. I don’t have the flu, I just can’t sleep properly!

It was frustrating at first, but then I remembered something my mom told me a while back. Every time she had a night of not sleeping well, each time she would wake up, she would pray for someone, and then she could return to sleep.

Now, I’m not saying this is an exact formula, by any means, but it does seem that every time I wake up lately, the Lord has laid someone or something on my heart. Maybe it’s His way of reminding me that I’m not the only weak one in need of His strength and mercy. We all are.

I have had specific people come to mind, such as a cousin whose job is in danger or a woman who posted on this site about her son who is also terminally ill. I’m reminded of my friend who can’t spend proper time with her husband (actually several friends) because of jobs, school, etc.

I am reminded of those far away; not just my aunt and uncle in Estes Park who must move YET AGAIN because of their worsening health problems, but all the spiritually blind people in upper-class societies, such as Paris or London, and all the people in Kenya who are just desperate to hear the Word of God. They may have nothing, but they can have the greatest gift of all.

All these things I think upon in the “night watches.” I can very easily get caught up in myself, my struggles, my situation, with all the nurse visits and cards and people telling me they are praying for me. So I guess, in a way, God is giving me a rest at night, even though I may be awake. He is giving me a break from ME and all the attention that focuses on me during the day. He’s reminding me there’s a hurting world full of hurting people who need prayer just as much or even more than I do.

It’s hard to describe, other than refreshing.

So here I sit, at 4 a.m. at my computer (the third time I’ve awoken tonight), and I praise God that He has given me this time to look outward, instead of inward, which so easily happens during the day. I don’t have a strong heart, but I do have a heart that needs to be exercised. I suppose He has given me the “night watches” in order to do that.

So I pray Lord Jesus right now, not for me or for anything related to my situation. God I just want to pray for all the other broken hearts in the world right now, the desperate souls, the sleepless, the worried, the hurting. I need you so much Lord, and I know that everyone else is in the same boat, whether they know it or not. And “Because you are my help, I rejoice in the shadow of your wings.” (Ps. 63:7)

Amen.

Support Elle Devenish here

Check back with CP soon for more updates on Elle’s condition in “Dying to Meet Him.”

http://www.christianpost.com/news/dying-to-meet-him-sleepless-nights-a-blessing-in-disguise-70307/

Refuse to pull back!

“You will spread out to the right and to the left.”                  Isa 54:3 NIV

Has all the gloom and doom in the news caused you to become fearful and begin to pull back? Take a moment and read this: “Sing, O barren woman, you who never bore a child…shout for joy, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband…Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right hand and to the left…Do not be afraid; you will not suffer shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood” (vv. 1-4 NIV). Satan will try to plant all kinds of fear in your mind about things that are not even likely to happen. He will tell you that your children are going to be lost; that because cancer, Alzheimer’s or heart disease runs in your family, you too are going to get it. His goal is to stop you dead in your tracks. He knows God’s plan for you is to “spread out to the right and to the left,” not pull back. “How long will this attack last?” you ask. At least as long as the longest stand you’ve taken against Satan in the past! What can you do? “Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day” (Eph 6:13 NKJV). Stand squarely on God’s Word and refuse to pull back.

http://theencouragingword.wordpress.com/2012/02/27/refuse-to-pull-back/