Evangéliumi Hírnök, 2003 (95. évfolyam, 1-11. szám)

2003-03-01 / 3. szám

heart? If you’ve been talking to God, you know what he would say. Ephesians 2:10 says “we are God’s workmanship, cre­ated in Jesus Christ to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Or how about that we are created in God’s image and He has a perfect plan for our lives? So you know that loser can’t come in. But what if he puts up a fight? What if he’s too strong for you to beat him? Then ask God to help you. Pray “Jesus, loser is a tough guy, but you’re tougher. Can you please come and kick him out for me? Loser is gone. Now groupie comes to the door, “man, you are so cool! I wish I was just like you. The world is such a lucky place to have you!” Well, do you let groupie in and think that you’re better than everyone else? Let’s see what Christ says. Romans 12:3 “don’t cherish exag­gerated ideas of yourself or of your im­portance.” Or how about Galatians 6:14 “The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is my only reason for bragging.” Kick groupie out. Now temptation and lust come to the door. They don’t say much, but you want to let them in. What do you do? Song of Solomon 2:7 says “do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.” And God has someone in store for you to marry who is hoping that you stay pure for him/her. Temptation and lust definitely cannot come in. Max Lucado gives an interesting illus­tration of the heart in his book Just Like Jesus. Say you come to visit me one day and find that I’m working on my greenhouse. It’s not mine, though. It’s my fathers. It’s a state-of-the-art technology greenhouse that is just perfect for anything that is grown in it. So I ask you to help me col­lect seeds for my father’s greenhouse. He put me in charge of it. Now, you’ve al­ways thought I was a bit crazy, but what I do next removes all doubt in your mind. I start collecting weed seeds. I get every­thing from crab grass to dandelions. You can’t believe it. You say to me “I thought you wanted a greenhouse full of flowers and fruit? “I do” I reply. “Then don’t you think you should plant flower and fruit seeds?” “Nah. I’d have to drive all the way to the garden store to get them. No thanks, I’m taking the cheap and easy route.” What do we leam from this illustra­tion? First, God is the rightful owner of our hearts. Don’t assume that it’s your body and you can do whatever you want with it. Not exactly. Second, we leam that the mind is like a greenhouse. What­ever you plant there takes root and grows, and it’s hard to get rid of weeds. You can mow them down, but they’re still rooted. March, 2003___________________________ ^^iuhtTHh^ Cmdái mb— They’ll spring up again. That’s why it’s so crucial to ‘guard’ your heart. It’s a lot harder to cut sin out of your life when it’s full-grown. So don’t go to a bar if you’re an alcoholic, and don’t try to prove your purity in a pornography shop. Finally we leam that guarding your heart is not easy. It’s always easier to let your guard down and let all kinds of sin filter into your heart and mind. We’re not programmed robots. God gives us a choice. A choice to do evil or good. It’s a choice to stop do­ing one thing and do something else. It’s like stopping in the middle of a freeway, turning around, and going against the flow. D. It’s tough trying to swim upstream and go against the flow by yourself. That’s why it’s so crucial that you make friends that help you with your fight and to become active in a church. I strongly encourage you to find someone that you look up to and ask him to keep you accountable. It makes a world of difference. Know your sin, know your God, know your plan, and know your friends. Guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Mikó István szolgálata a Torontói Ifjúsági Találkozón hangzott el, 2002. október I3-án. TOP 10 BEST BILLBOARDS by God On behalf of an anonymous client, a Ft. Lauderdale advertising agency launched a unique billboard campaign which has since spread to other parts of the country. All the messages are signed “God.” A sampling: 10. Let’s Meet At My House Sunday Before The Game. 9. What Part of ‘Thou Shalt Not...’ Didn’t You Understand? 8. Loved The Wedding. Invite Me To The Marriage. 7. Keep Using My Name In Vain And I’ll Make Rush Hour Longer. 6. Will The Road You’re On Get You To My Place? 5. Big Bang Theory. You’ve Got To Be Kidding. 4. You Think It’s Hot Here? 3. That ‘Love Thy Neighbor’ Thing. I Meant It. 2. Need Directions? 1. Have You Read My #1 Best Seller? There Will Be A Test. www.religiontoday.com Crying for a non-violent solution excerpt from a missionary journal “EUROPEAN COLLEAGUES RE­SPOND TO THE THREAT OF WAR IN IRAQ Our chapel has had extra times of prayer by students and faculty who are deeply concerned about a possible war with Iraq. Frankly, most of our Euro­pean Baptist colleagues are strongly op­posed to a U.S.-led unilateral invasion and war with Iraq. They don’t question that Saddam Hussein should be dis­armed, but our friends generally feel that the U.S. intention of forcing a regime change sounds like a throwback to 19th century colonialism. Does U.S. leadership realize the hor­rendous consequences such a war would bring in the loss of innocent human life and destruction? Christians often affirm that we need a presence and witness among Muslims. But a war could very well close the door to such witness for decades, while evoking an increased radical Muslim commitment to terror­ism! We don’t know all that people are praying in the chapel during these times of earnest intercession, but our conver­sations over coffee and in classrooms lead us to believe that many are crying out to God for a non-violent, non-mili­tary solution. And we resonate with those prayers.” Wesley H. Brown, Ph.D., Chaplain & Lecturer, International Baptist Theo­logical Seminary, Prague ______________________________Page 9. ÉPÍTKEZŐ GYÜLEKEZETEK NYÍRBÁTOR “Nyírbátor Kelet-Magyarország e­­gyik legszebb, történelmi emlékekben igen gazdag, 14 ezer fő lakosú kisvárosa - írja a gyülekezet lelkipásztora, Beke László. Ez évben lesz, hogy 90 éve kezdődött itt baptista misszió. Elődeink rövidesen imaházat is vásároltak, egy államosított, az előtt boltként üzemelő épületet. Ennek kora meghaladja a 100 évet is. Mind a mai napig mindenféle komfortot nélkülöz, állaga igen meg­romlott, tehát a felújítása tovább nem hanyagolható. Sajnos, közben a gyüleke­zet létszáma is lecsökkent, jelenleg 15 fő bemerített tag, gyermekek, néhány fiatal és látogatók alkotják. Azonban nem va­gyunk sem lemondóak, sem közöm­bösek, keressük és kihasználjuk azokat a lehetőségeket, amelyeket. Istenünk ad a misszióban. Várjuk az Ő áldását, amit hiszem, hogy meg is fog adni! A misszi-

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