Atheists ‘Come Out’ in Idaho Using Billboards Claiming Millions Are Good Without God By Stoyan Zaimov

A new billboard campaign by the Treasure Valley Coalition of Reason in Idaho is turning heads by suggesting that there are millions of atheists out there and urging people to “join the club” – reflecting a growing movement among atheists in the U.S. looking to “come out of the closet” about their non-belief.

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  (Photo: http://unitedcor.org)
  Treasure Valley CoR billboard asking “Are you Good without God? Millions are.”

Two new signs put up in Caldwell feature two related messages over a backdrop of a sun rising over a valley, and read: “Are you good without God? Millions are” and “Don’t believe in God? Join the club.”

“Well, it’s just to let people know, especially the closet atheists, that you are not alone,” Art Rigsby, a local atheist shared with KBOI2-TV. “There are millions of people who do not believe in God.”

“The point of our ongoing nationwide awareness campaign is to reach out to the millions of atheists and agnostics living in the United States,” shared Fred Edwords, national director of the United Coalition of Reason. “Such non-theists sometimes don’t realize there’s a community for them because they’re inundated with religious messages at every turn. We hope our effort will serve as a beacon and let them know they aren’t alone.”

The Treasure Valley Coalition of Reason is an alliance of six atheist, freethought, humanist and skeptic organizations that have joined forces in the greater Boise area. The coalition shares on its website that it will celebrate the launch of its billboards by marching in the 4th of July parade on Wednesday.

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“Being visible is important to us, because, in our society, atheists and agnostics often don’t know many people like themselves. Moreover, if traditionally religious people can be open about their views, why can’t we be open about ours?” Edwords asked.

A number of members of the community who have seen the billboards have expressed disagreement with their messages, but say they respect the group’s right to freedom of speech.

“No, I’m not cool with it, but they have the right to say what they want,” said Elizabeth Weaver.

“The only thing I can do is love them, and pray for them,” added Stefan Constantine

Atheistic billboards have been on the rise in the country in the past year, with a recent one put up by a secularist organization last month in Dallas encouraging Catholics to “Quit the Church.” The campaign was in response to the Roman Catholic Church‘s opposition to the contraception mandate that requires religious institutions to offer insurance for birth control.

http://www.christianpost.com/news/atheists-come-out-in-idaho-using-billboards-claiming-millions-are-good-without-god-77642/

God Chose You For Who You Are

1 Samuel 16:7 (KJV) But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

In the verse above, Samuel was looking for a new king to rule over Israel, because Saul lost favor with God, and God told Samuel to go to the house of Jesse to look for the next king.   God wanted to make sure Samuel didn’t just pick someone who looked the part of a king, with the right height, and carried himself in the right way, debonair, and all, because God had already chosen the next king, before he sent Samuel.

I liked this verse of scripture, because it shows it doesn’t matter how you look, how you talk, or dress, God can use you, if you will only allow him to, and you will only listen to the call from Him.  You may not think you can do anything, but if you put your trust in God, and allow Him to use you, He can do wonders with your life.  You only have to turn your will over to His will, and it will happen.  You just have to begin to let people see Jesus through you, instead of people seeing you, and you will be amazed at what can be accomplished!

I’m sure when Samuel came to David’s house, he never expected he would be the next king of Israel, because he was just a lowly shepherd boy, playing a harp in a field, watching the sheep.  But, God knew he was there, He knew his heart, and knew what He could do with David as a king.  We all know what kind of psalmist he was, and we know he failed God at times, we all do, but God is a forgiving God, and David knew that, and kept the faith till the end. 

God may choose you to be a preacher, a teacher, a singer, or just a faithful church member that helps at your local church and community, and witnesses to those around you, but whatever God calls you to do, never think that you are unimportant!  God chose you for who you are, and you are important to Him.  He never wants you to go to Hell.  He made you to be with Him in Heaven.  He only made Hell for Satan and his angels, not for us, those he created to worship Him.  He wants us all to be with Him in Heaven.  Ultimately the choice is up to each, and every one of us. 

When you feel that small voice in your head calling you to choose Him, to come to Him, to not do something, and you don’t answer that voice, you are making the choice to follow Satan.  Not making the choice to correct our mistakes, or sins, is making a choice for Satan, and Hell, whether you realize it or not.  If you have not made the choice for Jesus as your personal Savior, I urge you to do so now!  He is waiting for you, loving you no matter what.  If you have made that choice, and you’re not sure you have everything covered under the blood of Christ, make sure it is now.  Make sure there is nothing that will keep you from going to Heaven should Jesus sound that trumpet right now.  He could come any moment.  You don’t want to be left behind! 

I may not know any of you who are reading this blog, but I love you all just the same.  We all have a soul that is going to live on somewhere when we die, or when Jesus comes.  Our soul will either live on in Heaven, or Hell, for eternity, in glory, or in torture.  It is a decision we all must make.   Those that don’t believe in God and Satan, Heaven and Hell, one day will, but I hope you do not wait too late.  I pray you open your eyes before you stand before God’s judgment seat, and hear Him say, “Depart from me I never knew you!” 

Transfusion for the Soul

Transfusion for the Soul.

A Parade Worth Marching In

“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.” 2 Corinthians 2:14

 

For Americans, the Fourth of July is usually a day of picnics, parties, and parades. Putting aside partisan differences and political perspectives, the people of the nation gather to celebrate Independence Day—the founding of the United States. Across the nation, people will line the streets of their towns and villages to see a line-up of brightly decorated floats, shiny fire trucks, antique cars, and grown men driving go-carts in circles. It’s a wonderful holiday and a great celebration!

I find it interesting to note that the apostle Paul actually uses the picture of a parade to teach the Corinthian believers an important biblical truth about the work of Jesus on our behalf. In the second chapter of 2 Corinthians he says that God “always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:14). The Corinthians would have been very familiar with the idea of “triumphal processions.” In fact, anyone living under the Roman Empire would have instantly pictured what Paul was describing.

Historians tell us that whenever Roman forces captured another region, the victorious Roman commanding general would stage a parade. Gathering his victorious soldiers, he would march through the streets of the city with crowds lining the roads. The captured general and his subdued men would be forced to march, shackled and humbled, with the Roman forces to demonstrate the power and might of Rome’s reach. While they marched, the pagan priests of Rome would burn incense to symbolize the sweet smell of victory.

Paul takes that powerful picture and uses it to illustrate the immensity of Christ’s victory over sin and death in the lives of His followers. He says that in the spiritual world, we are being led by the victorious one—Jesus—in a triumphal parade that displays His victory over the forces of evil. We have been set free from our enslavement to sin, and we are now “slaves to righteousness” (Romans 6:18). We have a new master now that we have been gloriously set free!

Paul even takes the illustration one step further by referencing the incense burned in the Roman processions. Look again at what he says in 2 Corinthians 2:14, “God . . . through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.” Isn’t that incredible! Our lives, Paul says, are to be a sweet-smelling reminder of how attractive and appealing the freedom and victory we find in Jesus can be! The scent of God’s grace is supposed to linger in the lives of those in our sphere of influence.

So today, if you are an American, enjoy the parades. But if you are first and foremost a follower of Jesus, revel in the independence and freedom that you have found in Him. Picture yourself being led through the streets of your town, on display to your friends and family as a trophy of Christ’s victory. And pray that your encounters with others will leave behind the sweet smell of God’s goodness.

And here’s the good news: When Jesus is the victor, no one can rain on your parade!

YOUR JOURNEY…

• What are some practical ways to celebrate and remember the day that Jesus set you free from your sin?
• What freedoms and blessings do you enjoy now because of Christ’s victory on the cross?  (If you need some ideas, look at Romans 6:1-23, 7:1-24, 8:1-39 and 1 Corinthians 15:1-58.)
• How effectively is your life spreading the “fragrance of the knowledge of Him”? Do the people in your sphere of influence tangibly see and experience the goodness and grace of God through you?

http://getmorestrength.org/daily/a-parade-worth-marching-in/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GetMoreStrength+%28Strength+For+The+Journey%29

One of God’s Great “Don’ts”

Do not fret— it only causes harm —Psalm 37:8

Fretting means getting ourselves “out of joint” mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say, “Do not fret,” but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret. It’s easy to say, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37:7) until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced to live in confusion and agony like so many other people. Is it possible to “rest in the Lord” then? If this “Do not” doesn’t work there, then it will not work anywhere. This “Do not” must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself.

Worrying always results in sin. We tend to think that a little anxiety and worry are simply an indication of how wise we really are, yet it is actually a much better indication of just how wicked we are. Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans but to fulfill God’s plans. Fretting is wickedness for a child of God.

Have you been propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle? Set all your opinions and speculations aside and “abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1). Deliberately tell God that you will not fret about whatever concerns you. All our fretting and worrying is caused by planning without God.

http://utmost.org/one-of-god%E2%80%99s-great-don%E2%80%99ts/

Good Morning!

“Stop trusting in mere humans,      who have but a breath in their nostrils.      Why hold them in esteem?“— Isaiah 2:22

Trust in God, not in man. Isn’t that, well, obvious? Of course we trust only in God! Why did Isaiah, in this passage, think otherwise?

According to ancient tradition found in the Talmud, this passage must be seen in a larger context. After all, this verse (and those before it) describes what will happen on “the day of the Lord” (Isaiah 2:12). Our passage, then, discusses how a person should behave over the course of daily life. It tells us how to act from when we get up in the morning to when we go to sleep at night.

Specifically, our passage means to say that every day, right when we get up out of bed, we should remember to thank God for all that He has given us and to acknowledge Him as the Master of the Universe. And when Isaiah tells us to “stay away from man,” he means that before greeting his fellow man each morning he should first, so to speak, say “good morning!” to God.

Isaiah’s lesson to us is all about prioritizing correctly. What do we value in our daily lives? We want to make a living. We want to have a peaceful life. We want to enjoy ourselves in our free time. All of these are important, of course, but when we make a list of things that are important to us, do we think of our relationship with our Creator? Do we remember that we have a responsibility to honor God by setting a good example for others through our words and actions?

Isaiah is reminding us that we need to make service to God our first priority. We need to remember that acknowledging God “up there” will lead to a better life for us down here. Once we get our priorities straight, we’ll find that we can better enjoy the world around us.

And as the ancient Jewish tradition says, it all starts with saying “good morning!” to God

http://www.holylandmoments.org/devotionals/good-morning

Jesus Heals A Little Girl

When Jesus again crossed the Sea of Galilee in a boat to the other side, a large crowd had gathered to meet him; so he stayed beside the sea. One of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, came up, and, on seeing Jesus, fell at his feet and earnestly begged him, saying, “My little daughter is dying; come, I beg of you, and place your hands on her that she may be cured and live.” So Jesus went with him, and a great crowd followed and pressed about him.

In the crowd was a woman who had suffered from hemorrhage for twelve years and had been treated by many physicians, spending all that she had, yet was none the better, but rather had grown worse. Having heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his robe, for she said to herself, “If I can but touch his garments, I shall be cured.”

Immediately the hemorrhage stopped, and she knew that she was cured of her disease. Jesus, knowing at once that healing power had gone from him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” His disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet do you ask, ‘Who touched me?’” But still he looked for her who had done this, until the woman, frightened and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came forward and fell down before him and told him the truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has cured you. Go and live in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

While Jesus was still speaking, messengers came from the house of the ruler of the synagogue, saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Master further?” But Jesus, overhearing the message, said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Have no fear, only trust.”

Jesus would allow no one to go with him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. When they came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, he found a crowd of people weeping aloud and wailing. Entering, Jesus said to them, “Why are you making an uproar and weeping? The child is not dead, but asleep.” And they laughed at him scornfully. But he sent them out and took the father and mother of the child and those who were with him into the room where she was. Then, taking her by the hand, he said to her, “Talitha koumi,” which means, “Little girl, arise.” To the astonishment of all, the little girl (who was twelve years of age) got up at once and walked about. But Jesus charged them strictly to let no one know of this, and told them to give the little girl something to eat.

http://kids.ochristian.com/Childrens-Bible/Jesus-Heals-A-Little-Girl.shtml

“Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good.” Jeremiah 32:41

God rejoices as much in saving your soul as you can rejoice in your soul being saved. Say I “as much?” His joy is infinite, and yours is finite; his the joy of God, and yours but the joy of man. Do you believe that God rejoices to save, delights in saving? Why else should he have given his dear Son? Do the angels rejoice over repenting sinners? Is there no joy then in the bosom of God to save a sinner too? How this takes us up, as it were, into the very realms of bliss, and reveals to us the wondrous character of God in his Trinity of persons and Unity of essence, that there is a rejoicing in the salvation of the Church, so that God himself, so to speak, is filled with eternal joy in the salvation of his people. When his dear Son offered himself as a sacrifice for sin, and thus put away the transgressions and iniquities of the Church by his own blood-shedding and death, overcame death and hell, and washed us in his blood from all our filth and guilt and shame, God, so to speak; rejoiced with infinite joy in the completion of the work of his dear Son. It was the fulfilment of his eternal purposes of wisdom and grace. It was the manifestation of his glory to men and angels. It was the triumph of good over evil, of holiness over sin, of mercy over judgment, of love over enmity, of wisdom over craft, of the counsels of God over the devices of man, and, above all, of the Son of God in his weakness over Satan in his might. It was peopling heaven with an innumerable multitude of saints by whom eternal anthems of praise should be sung to God and the Lamb. Thus we may see how the God of heaven even now rejoices with holy joy over every one whom he brings to the enjoyment of a salvation so free, so great, so glorious.

http://devotionals.ochristian.com/j-c-philpot-daily-portions.shtml

Protect Your Assurance in Christ

Protect Your Assurance in Christ.

Fireworks And Freedom

Thanks to the ingenuity of our Chinese friends, we here in the US celebrate our independence this month with massive displays of colorful fireworks.

Every year when we sing our national anthem and enjoy the vibrant patterns created by “bombs bursting in air,” I remind myself that most bombs are deadly, not beautiful like the fireworks display. Although both use similar ingredients, one is intended to kill; the other to entertain. In this metaphor we see an example of how something can be used for both good and evil. In the hands of capable, careful, and caring people, something dangerous becomes glorious. But the opposite is also true.

Freedom—the very thing we celebrate with fireworks—can also be used for good and evil. As believers in Christ, we are free from the restrictive Mosaic law, but the Bible warns us not to use our spiritual freedom for selfish purposes: “Do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Gal. 5:13).

Not everyone has political and religious freedom, but all believers in Christ have spiritual freedom. We must not use it as a weapon to impose our will on others but to display the glory of God’s will.

Free from the law—O happy condition! Jesus hath bled, and there is remission; Cursed by the law and bruised by the fall, Grace hath redeemed us once for all. —Bliss

Freedom doesn’t give us the right to do what we please, but to do what pleases God.

http://odb.org/2012/07/04/fireworks-and-freedom/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+odb%2Ffeed+%28Our+Daily+Bread%29