Amazing story of wayward child and praying mother

This is a true story that should comfort the hearts of all praying parents.

In 2003 I owned a Weight Control Center. It was a licensed dealership. The Corporate Office made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Because of the location, they wanted my dealership for a corporate training center. So I struck a deal, sold it to them, and became a trainer for them.

My former center would continue to be a functioning weight control center, so they interviewed applicants to manage it and thought to promote my current manager, I'll call her, Karen, to a corporate position. They wanted my recommendation before doing so.

It would have been a nice promotion both in status and money for Karen. It would have launched a career for her.

She was a talented young woman, in her late twenties. She was a professing Christian who had confided to me that she did not live the life, but we had a comfortable and amiable working relationship. I considered her a friend and trusted her implicitly.

During the transition from licensed dealership to corporate training center, I was going through the files, making sure everything was in order for the new manager, and It became painfully clear that Karen had been taking advantage of the trust I had placed in her.

She had been managing my center during a period of violent [dv] abuse in my life. I was being stalked and had been largely in hiding for several months. I relied heavily on her to manage every aspect of the Center for me during my absences. Though I made random appearances at the office (usually several times weekly) to check the books, Karen handled everything else.

The books were in good shape, and new business was coming in regularly (she was very good at selling the programs and counseling clients). But It turned out, she had been using most her time at my center running her own independent travel agent business and had woefully neglected our client records (and anything else that I might not easily notice or that did not require her immediate attention.)

That was my life lesson in placing too much trust in managers. We are now coming to the part that should comfort the hearts of believing parents.

Corporate was awaiting my advisement as to whether Karen should be promoted or not, and I had been putting off giving my answer. I was aghast at what I had learned about her job performance and had reached a decision to recommend that Corporate terminate her employment rather than promote her, when the Spirit of the Lord interrupted my plans by emphatically commanding me to, "LEAVE HER ALONE! SHE HAS A RIGHTEOUS MOTHER."

Selfish as I am, my first thoughts were for my own children, and I responded as a parent to the God's command to, "LEAVE HER ALONE!" My immediate response was, "Lord, my children have a righteous mother too!"

I already knew the Bible promise that the righteous are blessed AND THEIR SEED (their children). But that day, the Spirit of the Lord took that understanding to a whole new level---He spoke directly to my heart and told me that He had Karen in his sights and was dealing with her in a special way, BECAUSE OF HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH HER MOTHER.

I know there are limits to our understanding of how God works and the various trials we go through in our lives often cry out for answers that we may never get, this side of Heaven. But, for good reason, our hope is always in HIM.

Parents do not stop being parents when our children are grown. We still fret and worry over them, just as we did when they were small. Sometimes even more so, because, now, they are no longer under our wing. We never stop praying for for the safety and well-being of our children.

I personally find great comfort in my experience with Karen and the knowledge that God had a wayward child's back, BECAUSE OF HER MOTHER'S FAITH. I pray God will comfort and strengthen all of our hearts as we, in faith, stand in the gap for our children.

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Our Workshop Changed the Course of her Life!

  All I can say is, Wow! (even if I was one of the presenters, along with author Diane Yates) at our "Writing Your Story/Road to to Publication," workshop).

It was both thrilling and humbling to hear an attendee say, "This workshop has given me new vision and changed the course of my life!"

Folks, it just doesn't get any better than that. 

NOVELIST PRESS

Precious in the sight of the Lord...: Chuck Missler 1934-2018

   Another of history's great intellects and soul-winners has gone from us. Few will disagree (whether they agreed with his theology or not) that among Bible scholars, Chuck Missler was a giant. 

   Do I agree with all of his conclusions? Of course not. But who among us agrees 100% with anyone else among us? I never doubted for a moment that he was my Christian brother, laboring in God's vineyard. 

   I enjoyed the challenges he issued on many topics, always saying, "Don't take my word for it. Study it for yourself, and come to your own conclusion." I loved his "out-of-the-box" thinking, and I had no trouble standing with him on how awesome our Savior and His WORD is.   

   Yes, I strongly disagreed with his complementarian position on male leadership. I still do. But I have never been one to throw out the baby with the bath water, and I just as heartily agreed with him on his constant urging for Christians to end biblical illiteracy by reading and studying their Bibles for themselves. 

    Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. My life and faith has been greatly enriched by his life and many of his teachings and challenges. I believe that we are the poorer for the loss of Chuck Missler. And my heart is greatly saddened that he is gone. 

So Much Going On!

   2017 was a pivotal year for me and Hungry Hearts Ministries, and from there, so much more is being launched for 2018.
   Where do I begin?

  For starters, as promised, Redemption: Bible Prophecy Simplified, is now available for FREE download HERE

  I have launched a radio ministry with a wide variety of 24/7 programming. See a list of programming HERE  Let me know what topics you would like to see added to the list. 

   I have new books in the works! Yes, even a romantic suspense novel. Christian fiction of course.

   My publishing company, One Way Press, will be launching a new website (first quarter 2018 ) and will begin accepting non-fiction manuscripts from new authors on a variety of subjects. Everything will be announced on this blog, and special announcements via email, so be sure and subscribe to my email updates. The form is located in the side-bar of this blog.

   I have agreed to co-host a weekly YouTube show with another pastor. This is launching very soon.   Seminars, workshops, and group workbooks/resources are all in the works. All to be announced.

   To help me accomplish all of the above, congratulate me on the awesome personal assistant God has sent me, Courtney Arzu. She is a talented millennial who has declared that it is indeed possible for me to be organized and productive (I feel like such a hopeless case!). So, with God's help (and Courtney's) I fully expect 2018 to be the most fruitfully abundant year yet for Hungry Hearts Ministries.
    The deepest desire of my heart is to win souls, make disciples, and serve my generation through providing evergreen Christian resources that will lead to Christ and uplift in this journey through life.

    Many thanks to all of my wonderful readers and prayer partners. May you have an abundantly blessed and prosperous new year.

Why Do I Believe in God?

What is the hope that is in Me? Why do I believe the gospel, the good news that Jesus is real and that he lived, died, and rose from the dead? Why do I have hope that I too will be raised from the dead, and that Jesus will come again to this earth and bring peace to it?

   Why do I believe, aside from the fact that he revealed himself to me with such awesome clarity, that I cannot deny him, aside from the fact that I have received countless answers to prayers for myself and others, aside from the fact that I have received healing after healing and amazing provision, according to his good promises, and even miracles at his mighty hand? I have experienced all these things. I can attest that they are true. 

   But aside from my own [and from my perspective amazing] personal experiences, what objective proof do I have that God is real?

   After God revealed himself to me in a big way, he began confirming my personal experiences with him. He did this through his Word, which I began reading [every day] since 1981. The Bible is where I learned about my Creator, where he invited me to put him to the test, and taught me how to do that.   

   Through his Holy Spirit, through his written Word, and through people, and circumstances, and even trials in my life, my Father in Heaven held on to me as I began taking baby-steps in faith, as I learned how to walk, and finally to run. He patiently taught me and raised me up in faith, to the point, that in a time of acute danger and physical injury, I could hold on to his faithfulness and experience a breathtaking miracle.

      My God and his written Word, have withstood thirty-six years of testing in my life, thirty-six years of reading, questioning, researching, and studying. I can attest to the astounding power of the living Word of God to bring passion and purpose into my life. 

   Historians, archeologists, geologists, biologist, physicists, astrophysicists, astronomers, and more, attest, also, to the accuracy of the Holy Bible. To date, no historical or scientific discovery has discounted the Bible, but rather affirms it.   

  Historically, there is more evidence for the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ than for any other ancient person or event. 

   The biblical prophets are batting a thousand. Bible prophecy is one of God's great signs that he is real. He has yet to be proven wrong. Things God revealed through his ancient prophets for their day were fulfilled with amazing accuracy. Some of his prophets spoke of things to come in the far distant future. The accuracy, to date, of God's prophets is good reason to believe that he is real and that his Bible is true. 

   For his children, for those who choose to belong to him, that is very good news.

   He promises eternal life. He promises help and hope for the present. He promises to come again to raise the dead, to change and catch up the living, and to finally bring peace to the earth. He promises a spectacular future for all who love him.  

   That is my blessed hope.   

   Do I write this from a position of privilege and absence of adversity, where life has always been easy for me? No. I have experienced much adversity--devastating adversity. But God has always been faithful. People have hurt and disappointed me, but God has never let me down.

   Yes, I believe in God. 

   I love him. I walk with him. I talk with him...And he is always with me.

What is your experience or testimony? Let us hear from you in the comment section below.

Girls are Different from Guys: Where Angels Play

   Differences do not threaten equality between the sexes, and the conservative feminist recognizes and celebrates differences between women and men. 

   Take for instance, the truck driver, Dianne Lively, who felt she was delivering the most special load of her life when she picked up a playground donated by, “Where Angels Play Foundation,” dedicated to the memory of little Ryanne Cara. 

   Lively was profoundly moved to be a small part of honoring the memory of a little girl’s life. And she felt privileged to be a part of the wonderful work of, “Where Angels Play Foundation,” in delivering Ryanne Cara's memorial playground. 

   She called a florist and arranged for balloons and ribbons to be delivered to a truck stop not far from the playground location. She contacted her broker and explained there would be a short delay while she stopped to decorate the truck before delivery. 

   The broker then called his contact at, “Where Angels Play,” and told them what she was up to. 

   This resulted in a last minute, quickly assembled--but very special--welcome, for the truck driver at the playground location, where a group was waiting to assemble and dedicate the playground. 

   Ryanne Cara's parents were there. The woman expecting in the picture below is her mother. 

   After she arrived, Lively was told that she was the only truck driver to ever decorate a truck for  playground delivery. They were so touched by extra effort she put into  celebrating Ryanne Cara's life and the delivery of the memorial playground, they made her an honorary member of the Foundation!

    Many, if not most, behaviors defined as “feminine” or “masculine” are culturally developed and deeply--but artificially--ingrained. The conservative feminist understands this. But what truck driver, Dianne Lively, did, was a uniquely female thing. 

   Men do wonderful things as well. Things that could be understood to be uniquely male things, and this writer has every intention of writing about them as they come to her attention. But few would argue that it simply would not occur to most males--truckers at that--to call a florist,  then drive down the highway with balloons and ribbons fluttering from their trucks. 

   The evidence of this lies in the fact that numerous "Where Angels Play" playgrounds have been delivered by male truck drivers--most of them in fact--and not one playground was delivered with balloons and ribbons decorating the big-rig.

   Until Dianne Lively made her entrance. 

   What Lively did was special. It touched the hearts of Ryanne Cara's parents and all the others who awaited the delivery of a playground that, in the memory of one precious little girl whose life was far too short. would bring joy to many children.

Conservatives: Stop painting all Feminists with the Same Broad Brush

Feminism a cult as defined [by men] in 1931

Equality is a good thing, and I am issuing a call to conservatives who value equality--especially those who have media platforms--to refrain from equating anti-family and pro-death platforms with feminism, to stop calling every anti-family, pro-abortion platform, "feminist" agendas.


Many feminists are pro-family and pro-life politically conservative people, and do not deserved to be lumped in with  groups that contradict their values.Would it surprise you to know that the very first feminist was a Christian, and that most early feminists were Christians?

Feminism, from the beginning, has been simply defined as advocating for women full equality with men in all things.

That seems reasonable enough to modern readers, but historically, the idea was bizarre, outlandish, and utterly evil to many. But most importantly, in understanding the extreme negativity attached to the word, it was a word originally defined by men who were unequivocally opposed the very idea of  equality of the sexes (women did not write and publish dictionaries at that time, nor did they have a say in what went into them), so naturally the word was coined and defined from a perspective that feminism was a cultish movement and a social evil. 

The oldest dictionary this writer owns is the 1931 Universities Webster Dictionary which does not contain the word feminist at all but does libel feminism as a "cult."  

Regardless of its actual meaning, most people associate the word "cult" with evil, oppressive, dangerous, and false. And that is the bias deliberately infused into the word feminism from the very beginning.

Think about it. Dictionary definitions inform public opinion, and are likely referenced by the population at large, even more so than the Bible! Webster’s initial labeling of feminism as a cult, was a stroke of genius in propaganda. It was thought control, discrimination, and bias at its finest. 

One pro-family, 19th century, feminist claimed that had she known in advance of the fierce persecution she would endure because of her activism for the full equality of women with men, it is doubtful she would have begun her advocacy in the first place.

1943

By 1943, in some circles, feminism had been upgraded, somewhat, from a "cult" to a "doctrine." And the word "feminist" finally found its way into a dictionary. It was defined simply as: "One who advocates **[that evil cult of] feminism." Pure propaganda!

**(Bracketed italics are author supplements)

1955

Is it any wonder conservatives today, even if they support equality, are still terrified of the words feminism and feminists? The propagandists have done their jobs well.

In 1955, the publishers of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary continued their hateful narrative,  discriminating against the very idea of equality of the sexes with their "cult" disinformation. (Webster's Complete Unabridged).

Keeping in mind that the word feminism was originally defined by men who opposed any semblance of equality of the sexes, it must be noted that the word was deliberately biased, from the very beginning, with a hateful connotation that it did not in reality possess. 

"THE FEMINISTS" narrative is pure propaganda that has been bought into--almost wholesale--even by those who support equality of the sexes.

It is time to stop perpetuating the lie (even unwittingly) that equality is evil. 

An open and objective conversation about equality for women and men is impossible when the  words "FEMINISM" and "FEMINISTS" (words that mean nothing more than advocacy for full equality of men and women) are constantly used as a synonyms for every evil agenda under the sun.

When speaking of the pro-abortion issue, I implore equality loving, pro-life, media commentators and reporters to call them for what they are, "pro-abortion supporters," and not, "THE FEMINISTS." When speaking of transgender and gay marriage issues, I implore conservative, pro-family, advocates with public platforms to please call them for what they are, "transgender and gay marriage supporters," not "THE FEMINISTS." 

Conservatives who have pubic platforms and large followings, I implore you to please stop referring to those in the political far left collectively as "THE FEMINISTS." When you do this, you effectively lump all supporters of full equality between women and men (including those of us who are conservative politically, pro-life, and pro-family) in bed together, as if we jointly promote an anti-life anti-family agenda together, when that is not the case and could not be further from the truth.

Feminism is not evil. Equality is good.

Feminists are not evil. Equality is good.

The practice of conservatives (even by those who support equality) of defining pro-abortion and anti-family far left  political platforms as "FEMINIST agendas," perpetuates an utterly false narrative.  

Equality of the sexes is not evil. It is inequality of the sexes is evil. It is inequality of the sexes, that has been the cause of much human suffering throughout the history of the world up through the present time.

 Feminism, is the practice of those who advocate for full equality of men and women. A feminist, is one who supports the full equality of women and men, and advocates for the practice of feminism.

Equality is a good thing! Therefore feminism is a good thing!

And that is why it is wrong to label groups whose primary agendas are not equality of the sexes, as feminist groups. Call them by whatever their primary agenda is. But please stop slandering conservative, pro-life, pro-family advocates of equality by painting all feminists with an outdated, uneducated, and biased broad brush. 



 
Woman this is WAR! Gender Slavery and the Evangelical Caste System, chronicles the early history of the women's rights movements, as well as the role of church leadership in aggressive suppression of  both women's rights and the historical record of Christian initiatives in the movements. Many of the same arguments used to support the institution of slavery, are still used today in suppressing the rights of Christian women through the complementarian movement. This book, is an excellent resource for all who desire an in-depth study of gender equality from a Christian perspective.