The Christian Life is a Process of Becoming More Like Christ

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There are new things to look at on the site.

  1. The is a new trailer of the book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” It is on the right side under the Amazon icon. Click on it to see what the book is all about.
  2. There is a new page forming called, “All About Writing.” That page will talk about publishing; have guest authors share, and discuss writing trends. It is in a baby stage, so bear with me as I slowly develop it to my and your liking.
  3. I have posted two 5 star reviews of my book, “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” on the “All About Writing” page. I will be add others as the days go by. Click on the All About Writing tab to also see all my other places you can connect with me.
  4. There is a new page called, “Publishing News.” This page will bring you news from around the world on trends, latest news on publishing, and any other things that may be interesting. Check it every time you come here. There is a new post there today that is very interesting. Just click on the “publishing,” tab above, to read the latest news on publishing.

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Another shocking announcement! ( That got your attention!) “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World, ” is now out in eBook form. I You can acquire it at all the eBook outlets. It is only $4.99. Help it climb the www.amazon.com best selling list.

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I have a podcast here that I did with John Kremer, the marketing guru. He invited me to share unusual places to sell books. Take a listen and hit those street running: goo.gl/WGTF7

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Thoughts just for you…

The Christian life is a process of becoming more and more like Christ. (Romans 8:29)

We need to purify ourselves. What does purify mean? It means to keep morally straight, free from the corruption of sin. God also purifies us, but there is action we must take to remain morally fit. (I Timothy 5:12) (James 4:8) (Ipeter 1:22.)

We need to also know the difference in commiting a sin and continuing to sin. Even the most faithful sometimes commit sins, but they don’t cherish a particular sins and choose to commit it. A believer who commits a sin repents, confesses and finds forgiveness. A person who continues to sin, is not sorry for what they are doing. Thus this person never confesses and never receives forgiveness. Such a person is in opposition to God no matter what religious claims they make.

Three steps are necessary to find victory over sin:

  1. Seek the power of the Holy Spirit and God’s word.
  2. Stay away from tempting situations.
  3. Seek the help of the body of Christ. Be open to their willingness to hold you accountable and pray for you.

So, live your life in a way that you can feel peace with your heavenly Father. Obey His ways, and believe that He sent His only Son down to this earth to die for you and me.

Remember:

You are not alone.

You are not forsaken.

You are not unloved.

Above all… never, ever, give up!

 

 

 

The is Corruption, Sadness, Death, and Self Doubt in Iran

Before we discuss the post for today, I want to remind you that you can get a free eBook just by subscribing to a great free newsletter. You can do that by going over to the right side bar, and clicking on the icon that says, “Sign up for my free newsletter and get instant access to the free eBook, The Top 25 Ways to Survive in a Troubled World. It is very timely with all the pain, and suffering there is in our world today. It also shows ways for you and me to cope during this time.

By subscribing you are also put in a drawing for books. They are top selling books, like the current one that is available to win called, “Three Cups of Tea,” By David Relin. He even autographed the book. It has been # 1 on the top selling list for 150 weeks straight! It is about Greg Mortenson trying to have schools built in Afghanistan, and Pakistan. There were many trials, and disappointments in countries controlled by the Taliban, who do not want the schools built. This is a wonderful read that will give you hope in a world that is not so friendly.

The deadline to subscribe to win this particular book is July 13th. There will be a drawing that evening. Don’t wait. I find when I do that I forget about it and don’t do it at all.

Now for the post that is about as current as you can get. Much of the information was on CNN.com this morning:

There is Corruption, Sadness, Death, and Self Doubt, in Iran.

In the Book, The Shack, By William Paul Young, there is talk about “The Great Sadness.”

This term relates to the awful time that Max, the lead character, goes through when he fears his daughter has been murdered. In this story the timeless question is asked, “Where is God in a World so filled with unspeakable Pain?”

Max found the answer. (I suggest you read the book to find out what answers he found.)

How do we find the answer?

We can look at Iran and see many things that need answers. There is corruption, great sadness, death, self doubt, depression, and living Hell.

The people of Iran are desperately seeking answers. They are living in their own great sadness. They are rioting. They are defying the government. People are dying because of their strong will for change.

Why does God allow all this to happen? Can’t He come down to earth and wipe out the bad guys, and give the good guys peace? Yes, He can.

Does it do that? No. Why???

God allowed us to make choices. He gave Adam and Eve free choices. Their choices cost them dearly. They would now have to go through death to be with the Father.

We see examples of bad guys causing pain and anguish everywhere.

How about Hitler? He murdered millions of innocent people just because he didn’t like them. They weren’t an enemy that he needed to fear. They were outsiders in his mind, and he decided to try to exterminate them.

How about Stalin? He must be in the Guinness Book of records for killing the most people. His total was over 42 million. He killed because he didn’t like them, and because they were trying to dethrone him.

More recently we had Saddam Hussein. He was a dictator that loved to poison, shot, rape, and imprison anyone who looked at him wrong.

Now we have Iran with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, winning a corrupted election, and the people are fighting back. Many are dying. Neda Agha-Solton was one of the people who died and she was a peaceful protester.

Her name Neda means voice. She may have died, but her voice has been heard all over the world. Ahmadinejad, the leader of Iran claims that there was something very wrong with her killing, and there needs to be an investigation. Another leader claims that it was the CIA that killed her!

The Iran government has become desperate. They have arrested more than 230 students, professors, journalist, and reformists. This is a calculated push to eliminate any opposition to the government. Even the main opponent Mir Hossein Mousavi is under constant police surveillance.

Among the most prominent reformist detained was Ebranim Yazdi, 78, who was a key aide to the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Khomeini, and served as the foreign minister after the 1979 revolution.

He was hospitalized when he was arrested. They came right into his hospital room took out the intra-venous tubes and took him to the notorious Evin Prison.

So why doesn’t God step in there and clear this mess up?

He is a loving God. He let us choose our destiny. He gave the people choices, before Noah built the ark. He gave the people of Sodom and Gomorrah choices before He destroyed them. He gave Pharaoh choices before his own son died.

This is and will be the pattern while there is still an earth to live on. We make our own choices. You make your own choices. Think about those choices. Do you know for sure that you are making the right ones? God loves you the way you are. He just doesn’t want you to stay that way.

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