POWER BLOG

Link: http://powerofaith.com

This is a story of something that happened a few years ago at a major university. Although it has gained much popularity, many claim it is just an urban legend. Whether truth or legend, it is an entertaining story none the less. (see comments below)

There was a professor of philosophy who was a deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to spend the entire semester attempting to prove that God could not exist. His students were always afraid to argue with him because of his impecable logic.

For 20 years he had taught this class and no one had ever had the courage to go against him. Sure, some had argued in class at times, but no one had ever really gone "against him". No one would go against him because he had a reputation.

At the end of every semester, on the last day, he would say to his class of 300 students, "If there's anyone here who still believes in Jesus, stand up!" In 20 years, no one had ever stood up. They knew what he was going to do next. He would say, "because anyone who does believe in God is a fool". If God existed, he could stop this piece of chalk from dropping to the ground and breaking.

Such a simple task to prove that he is God and yet he can't do it! And every year, he would drop the chalk onto the tile floor of the class room and it would shatter into a hundred pieces. All of the students could do nothing but stop and stare. Most of the students were convinced that God couldn't exist. Certainly, a number of Christians had slipped through, but for 20 years, they had been too afraid to stand up.

Well, a few years ago, there was a freshman who happened to get enrolled in the class. He was a Christian and had heard the stories about this professor. He had to take the class because it was one of the required classes for his major. And he was afraid but for 3 months that semester he prayed every morning that he would have the courage to stand up no matter what the professor said or what the class thought. Nothing they said or did could ever shatter his faith, he hoped.

Finally the day came. The professor said, "If there is anyone here who still believes in God, stand up." The professor and the class of 300 people looked at him, shocked, as he stood up at the back of classroom. The professor shouted, "You fool! If God existed he could keep this piece of chalk from breaking when it hit the ground!" He proceeded to drop the chalk, but as he did, it slipped out of his fingers, off his shirt cuff, onto the pleat of his pants, down his leg, and off his shoe. As it hit the ground, it simply rolled away unbroken. The professor's jaw dropped as he stared at the chalk. He looked up at the young man then ran out of the lecture hall.

The young man who had stood up proceeded to walk to the front of the room and share his faith in Jesus for the next half hour. 300 students stayed and listened as he testified of God's love for them and of His power through Jesus.

Link: http://powerofaith.com

Below, this video found on "youtube" is pretty cool! However, the coolest thing "I" found about this video, was that my 14 year old son was very excited to show it to me.

Of all the crud on the internet, just waiting for a chance to infect our children, and warp their minds, he was impressed with this one and was very excited to show it to me. (Share it with your children)

"This youtube video has been viewed 3,688,744 times" (even more after "you" watch it)

When I hear about even one kid with the faith and courage to stand up against the odds and defend their beliefs, it tells me "There "is" still hope for America" These are the children, and make no mistake, one day "The Children Shall Lead".

Link: http://powerofaith.com

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, he gave them the “Lords prayer”. Luke 11:2 thru 4. Everyone who reads this is so impressed with it, that they stop reading right there. It’s a neat and tidy little formula that fits right into the box that we keep God in. Problem is, this was not the point Jesus wanted us to get.

Jesus told us numerous times in the bible that if we want/need something from God, healing, miracle etc.., to pray and be persistent. He told us to literally hound God for what we need until he gives it to us. He even told us parables to show us how we are supposed to pray and get a miracle or answer to prayer.

What he wanted us to get, were the examples he gave directly afterward. If you read, you will see that Jesus gave several different examples to drive the point home to us. He’s saying: “I am an eye witness to heaven! I know the Father personally! If you want something from him, this is how to do it!"

Read: Luke 18:1 thru 8 and Luke 11:5 thru 10. (These are very short, read them)

Luke 11:5 Then He said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves;
Luke 11:6 for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him';
Luke 11:7 and from inside he answers and says, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.'
Luke 11:8 "I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs.
Luke 11:9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Luke 11:10 "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.

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Luke 18:1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart,
Luke 18:2 saying, "In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man.
Luke 18:3 "There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, 'Give me legal protection from my opponent.'
Luke 18:4 "For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, 'Even though I do not fear God nor respect man,
Luke 18:5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.'"
Luke 18:6 And the Lord said, "Hear what the unrighteous judge *said;
Luke 18:7 now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?
Luke 18:8 "I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?"

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You see, now is not the time to say "Help me God". It is the time to say: "HELP ME GOD", "HELP ME GOD", "HELP ME GOD".

God does listen and he will give you the desires of your heart!

Matthew 18:19 "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.

Sometimes we have big problems and sometimes we have small problems, but what we forget sometimes is that they are “all” small problems to God. Nothing is too great or too small for him to deal with.

Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

Excerpts taken from the Power of Faith Ministries Website - "Receive a Miracle" View the entire article at http://powerofaith.com/miracle.htm

Link: http://www.powerofaith.com

Did you ever wonder what God's favorite color is? Just look around. If you exclude all the man made structures, what do you see? You see Green!

However, when you back up a thousand miles or so and get a "God's Eye View" of the earth, what do you see? You see "Blue". SO, which do you think his favorite color is? Green or blue?

But, then again, the one thing that sets God apart from everyone and everything else, (even Satan) is his ability to create. No one else can do that. So are we to assume that God used up "all" his awesome power when he created the earth, or do you think he created other worlds?

I'm willing to bet that he did. (it's what he does, that no one else can do) So do you figure that he used the same color scheme that he did for earth, or maybe there are worlds out there where the plant life and oceans are yellow and red. Or purple and orange.

Or maybe colors we have never even seen before. You never know. God can do anything he wants! Maybe we'll see some day. Until then, I'm still rooting for the "Blue Planet".

Link: http://pofm.org

Does it feel like God isn't listening to your prayers? Do you need a miracle? Do you need healing? Do you need answers? Most people treat God as this kindly old man with a white beard. They just sit on his lap when needed and read a list of everything they want.

Although the scriptures say: "Whatever you ask believing, you will receive". (by the way, that scripture is true) you don't get answers! Do you really wonder why? Because God is not Santa Claus! You can't just ignore him 11 months out of the year, then give him a list of all your wants, then expect him to deliver.

Gee, Santa Claus would be much cooler, if it wern't for the fact that Santa Claus is not real! God requires a little more from you than Santa Claus. He requires a relationship! Is God real to you? Do you love him? (I mean really) You might say: "That's only for real holy people like the Pope or my pastor".

NO! It was especially meant for "you". But how do I have a personal relationship with God? You have it in the usual way. Could you possibly have a personal relationship with your spouse, if you only talked to them once a day, or once a week on Sunday?

What about your children? Mom, Dad etc. . . ? If you want to see a change in your life, talk to him! No fancy stuff, not on your knee's until they are bleeding, not using allot of impressive "holy sounding" words. Just talk to him.

Do it while the washer is filling up. Do it while waiting at the red light. Just do it! Make it a habit! Habits are easy to make. If you don't believe me, just step over every crack on the sidewalk for a week, after that, it will be a habit.

Talk to God every day at every opportunity for a week and it will be a habit. Only this one will pay off. God "will" reveal himself to you and you "will" start to see amazing things happen in your life. Then you "will" love him. When "that" happens, God help your enemies and those out to harm you.

Don't believe me? Try it! Unless of course you don't like miracles, answer to prayer, blessings etc...

Drive down the street in "anywhere, USA" and every mile or two you'll pass a Church. There everywhere. Big ones and little ones of every denomination. They have one thing in common though. In every one there is one man or woman who stands out and above all the rest.

He's dressed possibly a little nicer, he doesn't swear, (probably never has) doesn't drink, doesn't smoke and he or she is holier than anyone else. (Perfect) Being a man or woman of higher stature than the rest, they have a title that commands respect. That title is Pastor, Reverend, Father, priest, Rabbi and many others.

Once every month or two, you'll get to hear his testimony. The testimony about the time he sinned. It was many, many years ago. It was that dark time when he "Coveted his neighbors shoes". (the audience gasps) The good news is, Jesus has set him free! Granted, he still gets up two hours early every morning and prays that God will forgive him for that terrible moment of weakness, But, "he did - and he's forgiven".

It's an awesome testimony that proves the goodness and greatness of God. After all, can we even fathom the idea that God would send his only son to save a wretch like "that". Now, not only him, but everyone in the room is in tears. It's a Kodak moment.

It may appear to some that I have this deep hatred for the Church. Actually, I don't hate anyone. I'll admit, there are some very good and sincere preachers out there, but they are getting harder and harder to find. The corruption of the Church is widespread and almost out of control.

The person I described above doesn't exist. He's a phantom or at the least, an actor. There's an old saying and it's true. "You can't have a testimony without a test!" How do you show someone the way, if you've never been there yourself? How are you going to show someone the way to Pittsburgh and say "follow me", if you've never been to Pittsburgh yourself?

Too many modern day preachers are being pumped out of universities like it's an assembly line, and too few are ordained by God! They are learning the precepts of other men, then passing it along. Sure they come out with an impressive amount of memorized knowledge, but so do doctors, lawyers and accountants.

This degree can only come from God and your diploma isn't on paper, it's stamped on your heart. Again, this doesn't apply to everyone, but it does apply to many. I am an ordained minister. I keep the piece of paper for legal purposes, but other than that, It's useless!

I have a close friend that attended one of the major Christian Universities (Trust me, you've heard of it) Part of his curriculum was learning when to pound on the podium, when to raise or lower his voice to get the audience excited, and everything to do as you are working up to the climax. Passing the offering plate!

Call this what it is "Theatrics". It's a show. By all means, if you enjoyed the show, pay for the show, but when you leave the theatre, go home and read your bible. See what God has to say to "you".

As you may have noticed, I am a little rough around the edges. I'm not perfect and don't claim to be. My desire is to do better than I did the day before and be more pleasing to God. I am a sinner. I've done far worse in my life than to covet my neighbors shoes.

However, what I do have is a testimony! Some day I'll post it, but truthfully, the way some people get angry and upset over what I have to say about tithes, you're not ready to hear it yet. I can tell you first hand as an eye witness, God is awesome. He does still heal people. He does still work miracles and if your heart is right, he "will" viciously protect you like an angry father protects his teenage daughter. (only much more)

Skip the middle man. Get out your bible and let God talk to you directly.

Link: http://pofm.org

Is God hearing your prayers? How did you treat your spouse today? Did you know that the two are related more than you know?

1 Peter 3:7 You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.

This of course applies to wives also, not just husbands. The thing about arguing is, it takes two to have one! If you don't believe me, just try and have one by yourself. It's possible that the minute you started firing back at your spouse, (it doesn't matter who started it) Your "Red Phone" to God immediately went dead.

So there you are. Your spouse just stormed out of the house, and now, you are saying: "God, please fix this and make them treat me better", but all you are hearing is "static", because that's probably all God heard. Your "Red Phone" is now more like a cell phone that's slightly "out of range".

To be sure, arguing and screaming is not the only way to show dishonor to your spouse. It's easy and anyone can do it! (sounds like a commercial huh?) Simply correct your spouse in public, in front of other people, over ride a decision your spouse has made concerning your children or withhold sex as a manipulative punishment. There are millions of little ways, but each one guaranteed to "Hinder Your Prayers".

When is the last time you opened a car door for your wife, brought her flowers (for no reason) or dropped her off at the front door while you parked way in the back of Walmart's parking lot?

When is the last time you greeted your husband coming home from work with a coffee, a newspaper and a wink, while wearing sexy lingerie, just because "he" might like it? (warning, he probably won't drink the coffee "or" read the newspaper)

What do you want God to do for you? Think of it as a barter system, he's already told you what "he" wants. (Honor your spouse) God drives a hard bargain doesn't he?

Link: http://www.powerofaith.com

Can God put an evil spirit on a person, and would he? Can God do evil? Here are some interesting verses and food for thought.

1 Samuel 16:14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him. (Read also: 1 Samuel 16:16 and 19:9)

Zephaniah 1:12 "It will come about at that time That I will search Jerusalem with lamps, And I will punish the men Who are stagnant in spirit, Who say in their hearts, 'The LORD will not do good or evil!' (good or evil?)

When we read these scriptures, it seems God does not fit into the neat little box we like to keep him in, except for when we take him out occasionally to use him.

Isaiah 45:6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else.
Isaiah 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. (KJV)

I seems that God is not bound by the man made rules that we have set for him. I don't know about you, but I want him on "my" side. Are you sure you're not ready for that personal relationship yet? (just curious)

This sort of adds a new meaning to the words "Fear of the Lord" doesn't it?