It’s hard for me to understand why I have so many readers since I mostly write articles that expose erratic human behavior and human foibles in our Christian community.

Still though, I believe that what I have to say can be helpful to those who are new in the faith as well as the complacent Christians. After having worked in the Christian harvest field for over forty years and having studied the Holy Scriptures for just as long, I believe I have something to contribute to the Christian community and to strengthen the brethren as well – and not just tickle their ears.

As a matter of fact, being a precocious child, I led an elderly man to the altar just after I did so myself at the age of eight. I instinctively knew he wanted to receive Christ, but he was afraid to walk the aisle; so I offered my hand to him and walked him up front to do so – leading the way. Those were the days when people were earnestly seeking and finding Christ. Since then, Christianity has had its ups and downs and appears to be fading fast in our beloved country.

Christianity has come a long way from those days and the days when Jesus and the Apostles roamed the earth. The Gospel was simple then. Jesus spoke, set an example and taught the people who came to listen how to live and what to believe. There were no laughing ministries, rolling in the aisles and incoherent jabbering – yet. But it didn’t take long for Satan to rear his head and begin to lead people astray. Ever since those miracle-filled days, the evil one has been hard at work to try to undo what Christ said, did and taught – even going so far as infiltrating the body of believers – the church.

It seems that new and erroneous cults and philosophies have sprung up everywhere. Some are based on a man’s charisma and charm, but let us not forget that Satan can appear as an angel of light. These so- called Christian leaders are gifted with a way with words and/or a phony pious demeanor, but are ravening wolves inwardly. Others are obviously carnal-minded creatures, ready to take your last dollar so they can fly off in jet planes on so-called mission trips (actually vacations) and claim they are doing it for Jesus.

Christians come in all stripes and colors, and some only pretend to serve God; after all, they’re just being their human selves. Church is a good place to learn, but if a teaching doesn’t comport with the Word of God, then run – don’t just walk away from that group of blinded sheep.

Have you ever noticed how many times Jesus refers to his followers as sheep? There are two kinds of sheep: those who blindly follow anything or anyone, and those who know the master’s voice. We must know right from wrong and be able to discern the teachings of Jesus Christ. That’s why it’s imperative to know the Word of God.

It’s appalling how little most Christians know the Holy Scriptures even though they go to church every time the door is opened. The Christian life is an ever-growing process that bears fruit; it’s not just about going to church and pretending to be holy.

The Bible-based church is a good place to worship God in spirit and in truth; and again, the Bible is the only place to find truth – unadulterated truth. You can dig into it daily and never know all the supernatural things it contains.

“For the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

Rapture Ready and dropzonedelta.com are excellent sources of information based on Biblical truth. I read Rapture Ready news daily to glean useful information about world events that impact our lives. I thank God for these two Christian platforms.

We need to be grateful and uphold one another in every way possible. Right now is donation time on the Rapture Ready site – perhaps you can do your part to help keep it going with a donation.

It’s time we Bible-based/born-again Christians upheld one another. The way things are going, we may not have much longer to be of any use to the kingdom of God because of persecution. If Satan had his way, we would all be in jail or beheaded. Lucky for us the rapture is imminent.

On my daily perusal of the internet, I also post interesting news that deals with spiritual matters on Facebook, even though Facebook is becoming ever more “politically correct.” At present, I have over 450 “friends” including influential people in politics. One of my many friends, Kelly Tyson’s (an avid reader of Rapture Ready) mother Alma Perez Jackson, a devout evangelical Christian, was just voted into the prominent position of Vice Chairman of the Republican Party in the great state of Texas. She is the first Hispanic and/or woman to win that title.

I’m so glad that true Christians like her are winning elections. It may help with the reprieve we’ve been given by God Almighty – before the rapture takes us away.

We Christians all need to be involved; get into the fray and quit watching from the sidelines.

MOVIES:

Like I mentioned in the past, I get many of my movies at the library, and recently viewed the movie “Lion” which was based on a true story about a five-year-old East Indian boy who became separated from his mother, older brother and younger sister in India.

Locked in an empty train for days, he ends up hundreds of miles from home, alone and hungry. After barely escaping from pedophiles time and again, he is finally rescued by authorities in Calcutta. (The evil crime of pedophilia is alarming in that Godless country, and street urchins are considered legitimate prey for these evil perverts. Over 80,000 children go missing in that country every year.) However, because – at the tender age of five – he is unable to communicate where he is from to the authorities, he is given up for adoption and ends up in Australia.

BOOKS:

I’m presently reading “The Signature of God” by Grant Jeffrey. He writes about how the Bible is being proved by archeological means and how Bible codes embedded within the writings verify its veracity. It’s a very interesting read to say the least…..I’ll keep you posted.

You can watch live Bible-based streaming sermons on the internet by Dr. Hayes Wicker at www.FBCN on Sunday at 9:30 AM EST. (The sermon last Sunday was a doozie.)

YBIC

Jim Towers

Write me at – jt.filmmaker@yahoo.com. or www.thepropheciesmovie.com and book. I’m also featured on dropzonedelta.com.

Like it or not, we human beings are dropping like flies. This life is temporal and was never meant to be all consuming. We are only here on a trial basis – those who would acknowledge our creator and those who will not. We are given seventy-something years to do so, or even more by reason of strength and respecting one’s parents. Of course, there are many other lengths of days for many other reasons; but seventy is the norm for most of us, as the scriptures point out.

Life is exciting for most of us with much to discover and experience. Many of us are overtly enamored with life and all the goodies it offers, especially in our country of plenty. Money and power are often at the top of the list with pleasure running close behind.

Sexual pleasure is all too often abused by people with no self-control. Our political leaders are at the head of the line. Pedophilia and infidelity even permeate the church.

With our fun-loving endorphins just waiting to be stimulated, we humans find ourselves in a dilemma. The struggle to overcome these normal desires is sometimes overwhelming to those of us trying to please God. Christian maturity is a growing process – one that takes prayer and a drawing ever closer to God the Father. Only we who know God through Christ Jesus should be able to surmount these foibles through the Spirit. After all, the fruits of the Spirit are Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

In talking to my good neighbor, who is about my age, about such things, he said, “I never think about death or religion – just about what I enjoy doing – after all, once you die it’s all over. (I will address his response the next time we talk with this verse of scripture: “It is appointed once for man to die, but after this the judgment.”) Even as evangelical as I am, I didn’t think of it at the time.

Both he and his brother are agnostics. The last time his brother and I talked, he said, “I don’t believe in talking snakes.” He said this in referring to the book of Genesis that I was telling him about in casual conversation. I was startled by this man’s assertion and let it go – for the time being.

These two guys had no religious upbringing, or I surmised; but I know that when the time comes they will run to me for spiritual advice. Where else can a person go who is facing death or a serious illness?

But, even before the day was out, I was able to impart that verse of scripture that says, “It is appointed unto man once to die, but after that the judgment” to my happy-go-lucky neighbor. As we stood around talking in his front yard to two workmen he had doing tree work for him, I was able to take the spiritual conversation a step further as one of the workmen was a Christian. When I told the Christian workman he was a Pentecostal Christian, he was astonished to say the least: “How did you know I was a Christian?”

Although I had never met or talked to the man before, I had a distinct feeling that he was a brother in Christ. The other worker said he wasn’t one when I asked. I laughingly said he should repent. Then I pointed out that my friendly neighbor was also a nonbeliever, to which he answered, “I believe in God in my own way and received holy communion when I was a youngster.” I could have gone on and on, but I felt that I had given them all enough to chew on – for the time being.

I am surrounded by atheists and agnostics; but, since I live in the neighborhood, I must be careful about what I say and do around them. They don’t want to hear about the things of God – yet.

Still though, I have prayed for three other neighbors – in their homes. One was deathly ill, another had emotional problems and is taking medication for them, and the last one was a young man who was paralyzed in a car accident. Even though I have their respect and they are friendly toward me, they go through life as though there is no end to it and are just hoping for the best.

With everything that life has to offer, celebrities are also dropping like flies – victims to suicidal thoughts. Life without meaning is not worth living even if you have everything a person could wish for.

Recently, we’ve even seen the demise of some very famous people who have given up on life, people who should by all human standards be happy or at least content.

In doing research for this article, I found out that some of these folks hung themselves on a doorknob. This can only be done by strangulation and sitting on the floor while doing so. However, conspiracy theorists say that each of these celebrities was about to reveal the names of important people who are into pedophilia. Each of them had the means and ran with the big dogs in show business and politics. Although this theory is hard to believe, I wouldn’t put it past that group of evildoers.

In the meantime, drugs, accidents, illness, depression and just plain aging take their toll as well.

In Lynnwood, Washington, two seventeen-year-old co-captains of a high school football team died within days of one another – one of an apparent suicide caused by depression; the other of as yet unknown reasons.

“It is appointed unto man once to die, but after this – the judgment.” As grizzly and final as this statement is – it is in the infallible word of God. Therefore, a person ought to consider this fact every so often. It’s a good thing to take stock of one’s life and to get right with God. This can only be done through faith in Christ alone who “Takes away the sins of the world.” We should always be ready to meet our maker. Only then can we live life to the full.

I continue to evangelize my neighborhood and community for Christ as time runs out for us all.

BOOKS

“Media Madness” by Howard Kurtz is a well-written book that gives insight into how the media is continuing to play a role in bias politics. It fills the reader in on names, places and agendas.

Ending on a good note, let it be known that 31 people were baptized at First Baptist Church in Naples, Florida last Sunday. There appears to be a spiritual stirring in our community as well as the country at large. Check in on Sunday services with FBCN on the internet for the live-streaming Sunday service at 9:30 EST featuring Bible teacher and pastor, Dr. Hayes Wicker.

YBIC

Jim Towers

You can write me at: jt.filmmaker@yahoo.com

also dropzonedelta.com and www.thepropheciesmovie.com and book.