Blog
It is Scary Out There
Letter from Benny Hinn in italics:
Dear Partner,
I come to you with a broken heart You may have heard by now that my wife, Suzanne, whom I love very much and always will, filed for a divorce on February 1…It was a total shock when her lawyer called me the morning of February 17 to inform me that she had filed 16 days before. Even though Suzanne has been under great stress, the children and I never expected this to happen… My wife has no biblical grounds for what she has done…
We both have kept our covenant with God and stayed pure before Him and I am praying with all my heart that our precious Lord Jesus will heal my family and protect His work for His glory…
I want you, as my partner in this ministry, to know that I am going to continue preaching the gospel and praying for the sick as I have for 36 years. I will not allow anything to slow me down or stop me.”
I love you very much, Benny Hinn
Although I have never been a follower of Benny Hinn, (to much hype & maybe the hair do) I still find it chilling that you can be married to someone for 30 years and not see (or discern) this level of discontentment. Mike Mason in his book “The Mystery of Marriage” writes, “It is estimated that only five percent of marriages are truly happy and fulfilling unions…A bad marriage…can be the worst thing in the world, and perhaps the only thing worse yet is bad theology, a bad marriage with God…In both marriage and faith it is the quality of devotion that is tested, the ability to give unwavering and undivided trust in one direction.”
Hopefully this will stir us all to examine our own relationships and what we believe and practice.
It is scary out there…
Pastor Gary
The World View of Evolution
The evolutionists theory is becoming ever present. As Christians we must be aware and put our children on guard. It seems common that programming geared for children is tainted with an evolution tone. In cute, seemingly harmless movies and kids shows you will hear the little comments like “millions of years ago”…
When my daughter was four she had an interest in science. With Christian programming on science very limited, we rented some secular science movies. Most of the information in the movies was acceptable for her viewing; however, I noticed that every chance given they would slip in evolution based theories. I trained my daughter to yell “that’s garbage” loudly at the TV whenever she heard un-factual things spoken. This was my way of knowing that she was being a responsible viewer and not picking up on the “garbage” and processing the information as a fact.
This exercise worked great until she began attending a Christian preschool, one day during dinosaur week, the teacher read a book about dinosaurs, the opening line was “Millions of years ago…”. My daughter immediately screamed out “that’s garbage”. Needless to say she was taken out of the room. While talking to her about respect, (at four years old), she said, “why was my teacher reading that to us, it was a lie”. I consulted with the teacher who admitted that she had no knowledge of the Christian view point on the beginning of the earth. This is a classic example of someone who has adopted the worldview of evolution and didn’t even realize it.
Cathy
Christian Psychologist Makes A Shocking Confession
Larry Crabb, a well-known, and best selling Christian psychologist has written a shocking book. I have respected and been impacted by Larry’s work for nearly two decades. He would be on my list of favorite authors. His new book is called “Real Church” and it contains the white hot confession of the 64 year-old, Christ-centered psychologist. I’ll let him speak:
“I have no compelling desire to go to church. I wish I did, but I don’t…The more my interest in Christ has grown, the more my interest in church has lessened. I think that’s a terrible state of affairs. I wish it weren’t so. But it is. And I ask myself, why? …After talking with thousands of churchgoing people and looking under the surface of their lives to see what is really going on beneath, I don’t believe (with few exceptions) that the church in America is doing what God most wants done in the depths of people’s lives. We’re not reaching deep enough. We’re not penetrating the denial that keeps our worst sins and most terrifying fears out of sight…”
“Church as I know it usually leaves deep parts of me dormant, unawakened, maybe it’s familiarity, the predictability of pattern and content that I find boring…My hunger for truth…is rarely satisfied.”
Larry’s book raises many questions, which I’m sure many pastors will find threatening and irritating. For me, it stirred a desire for a healthier fellowship. A church that does not leave people stranded in the shallow end of Christianity, but one where the gentle rain from Heaven refreshes our spirits and sometimes — lightening strikes dry, thirsty hearts illuminating our need for forgiveness and healing and direction. One that Larry might even enjoy! What do you think?
Gary
Fort Myers Vineyard Christian Fellowship
(A Fort Myers Church)
Crocodile Dock has been a blast!
Crocodile Dock has been a blast! Over the last few nights, the kids have said some very funny things. Here are just a few quotes that Susan Morriss has recorded:
Steve set up a pretty cool Burning Bush scenario when God spoke to Moses about going to see Pharaoh. One little girl said, “That doesn’t look anything like a fire.” The little boy behind her quickly added, “But thanks for the effort!”
Steve, who was hidden, was the voice of God. One little guy says, “That’s not God- that’s Pastor Steve!”.
I was (Susan) trying to explain what an Israelite is. “We’re called Floridians because we live in Florida. We’re called American because we live in America. So where did the Israelites live?” One boy yelled, “In the desert!”, to which another boy quickly added, “Texas!”.
Earl Morris did a great job as a really mean Pharaoh. At one point, he said “No” so sternly that a little girl began to cry! As the plagues kept coming at the Egyptians, Pharoah continued to be negative. Steve asked the kids, “Have you ever met anyone so stubborn?” A little one next to me said, “Yeah, my mother!”.
A little later, Pharoah says that only the women and children could stay in Egypt- the men had to go. Steve asked if that would be good. One boy said, “You can take my dad- that would be good.”
When we reviewed how mean Pharoah was, one girl said, “His heart had been surgically removed!”.
Right after the Israelites painted the lamb’s blood on the door posts, God told them they would have to leave Egypt very quickly. They had no time to pack up everything. The kids were asked what they would take in a situation like that. “My laptop.” “My DS.” “My MP3 Player.” “Not my sister!”
When last night’s Bible lesson was over, one little guy said, “Can we start that all over again?”.
But it wasn’t all fun and games: last night they were asked to pray for their families. Kathy Morris asked for any special requests. “For a Make-A-Wish Partner named Max.” “For my little brother who needs heart surgery.” None of us were prepared for that.
Please help us pray for the needs of some of our littlest family members.
No doubt, there will be more to share. I will keep you posted.
Susan
Vineyard Christian Fellowship
A Fort Myers Church.
What Should Churches Do About Father’s Day?
If you were a pastor would you recognize special days like “Father’s Day?” If you preached a special Father’s Day message how would you keep from stirring up memories of those who grew up with abusive, addicted, cruel and insensitive Fathers. Would you pass out coffee mugs that said: “Super Dad,” – “World’s Best Dad,” – “King Dad,” or “Dad, King of The Grill.” Would you ask for testimonies from people in the fellowship that had awesome Dads at the risk of making those who didn’t, wish they would have went to the beach instead of church. Does sentimental and sappy comments concerning the greatness of an earthly Father draw you closer to Jesus. Can you remember one Father’s Day message that made a tremendous impact on your life?
I’m conflicted about what to do on these special days (Father’s Day, Mother’s Day) which the society in general has turned into major church events. Let me know how you feel. I will not post your personal comment or quote you without your permission.
We work with you for your joy (2 Corinthians 1:24)
Pastor Gary
Fort Myers Vineyard
Fort Myers Florida Churches
