The Mormons Have Sabotaged Christmas

The Mormons have pulled out all the stops in producing two of the most beautiful and moving Christmas videos ever. One called, "The World's Largest Nativity" and the other simply, "The Nativity." Both are Christian in nature but both end with an advertisement of The Church of Latter Day Saints.. The Mormons are seeking to portray themselves as Christians, when their doctrine (teaching) is far from anything of the true Christian faith of salvation through Christ alone which is by grace through faith alone. Mormonism is a false teaching not believing in the Lord God of the Bible, nor do they believe in Christ as the one and only way of salvation. They believe that one can only go to heaven by following the false teaching of Joseph Smith and the doctrine of the covenants, a system of works salvation. Mormons need the gospel of the Lord Jesus alone for salvation!

33 Years Remaining Faithful

This morning Nick Valdomar, a worker at New Tribes Guesthome in Manila told Margaret and me that it was 33 years ago this week that he graduated in the second class of boys at the Second Mile Discipleship and Vocational Center, a ministry began two years before.

Second Mike was built by volunteers and directed by Forest Holden, with the underprivileged and street boys discipled by Pastor Loreto Tarlit. 

After graduation, Nick traveled with missionary Forest Holden to a southern island to help build a hospital for our missionaries working with the Ati Tribe. 

Nike has worked with various ministries in skilled carpentry over the years supporting his growing family and now with several grandchildren.

He has worked with New Tribes Mission for several years now building furniture for the new five story guesthouse and maintaining the facilities of several buildings.

We hear often from New Tribes missionaries, "What would we ever do without Nick?"

Nick comes to work early each morning, and as he knows I really enjoy pandesal (special Philippine bread) with my coffee, he brings me this special bread as I read in the quite lobby at 6am in my morning time in the Word.

Margaret and I have tried to serve Nick and many others here over the years in the Philippines, but they always outdo us!

Praise the Lord for the ministry of missionary Forest Holden and Pastor Loreto Tarlit in investing in the lives of street boys at Second Mike, who have become engineers, Bible school professors, pastors, builders, and in the life of Nike, who 33 years ago was one of the many young boys of Manila with no hope, but Christ!

Keep In Touch!

One morning 5 am this week, I had coffee and Philippine pandesal (the best breakfast bread in the world) with a tribal missionary of over 25 years. He is presently finishing a commentary in the tribal language and teaches in churches throughout the mountains five hours northeast of Manila. He walks barefoot village to village with the Word of God.

I asked if it was hard work. He answered yes, but it was vital to keep in touch with each little church, to disciple them and encourage them. He then said sadly, that he wished his home church, which had supported him and his family for 25 years, but had only personally contacted him by letter, phone or email only three times in all these years; ONLY THREE TIMES IN 25 YEARS!

How are you in your personal contacts? Family, friends, organizations, etc, that you in some way should be in touch with; with a word of encouragement and concern or friendship in Christ's name?

How Did You Come to Come to Faith in Christ?

Recently I asked a short term worker from the US to the Philippines how she came to Christ? She thought for a moment and in a boring tone said, "I don't really know. I've always been religious but about two years ago I decided to get serious about God." The conversation then ended as she changed the subject.

That same day I asked a little worker at the guesthouse, where we are staying while in the Philippines, the same question. In the midst of her work she immediately answered very enthusiastically, "Oh, it was a long five-month period. Our family in the providence was very poor, and I had to work as a young girl to help support the family. The wife of the boss became a Christian and started a Bible study for the workers. I did not want to go, but to keep my job I thought I had to go. We studied the Bible April, May, June, July, and August. The Lord began to open my heart to the truth of the Gospel through His Word and on September 25, I trusted Christ as Savior!" She glowed as she spoke and almost bounced up and down! Now that is a testimony that draws others to the Truth. 

How is yours?

What Would You Do?

What would you do if you and your team planned a camp for 75 underprivileged street children of Manila but 280 boys, ages 10 to 18, showed up? Would you send them home? If so, which ones?

What would you do if you planned a Christmas jail party for 10 prisoners who had trusted Christ the previous year, and you became aware that there would be about 220 other prisoners listening in and watching from their near-by jail cells? Would you invite them also?

What would you do if you published a Gospel ad in a secular magazine with funds to handle follow up for 100 people but you received 3000 letters? The letters not only requested more information about the Word of God, but many asked for someone to meet with them for a Bible study in their home?

What would you do if you and a team were conducting a midnight ministry at two in the morning for 150 children and a little child prostitute 9 years of age came to faith in Christ? Would you let her remain with the lady she was living with in the park, the lady who was selling her to men?

What would you do if a man was dying of heart trouble in a small village in the central part of the Philippines, and the only way to save his life was to fly him to Manila as soon as possible? You could not get him to a main airport which was 3 hours away. The only way to get him out was to fly him from a small landing strip nearby but this would involve leasing a private plane at a cost of $4000, money which you did not have? What would you do?

Hard decisions? Let me mention a few more:

What would you do if one of your follow-up workers visiting a small boy who had trusted Christ the week before in a camp became aware that the boy had no food in his house and had not eaten since the camp? His sister had died the previous week of tuberculosis, his father had just abandoned the family, his mother had TB, and they had no money for medicine. Would you close your Bible (as the follow-up worker did) and take the family to buy some food and medicine, feed them and then have the Bible study? I hope you would, but what would you do if you found out the follow-up worker had used all of his own personal money and the organization had no money to repay him?

What would you do if you were already swamped with nearly 8000 people who trusted Christ during the year and yet more people were crying out for follow-up, for Bible studies, for counsel, for help?

These are just some of the situations we were faced with almost daily in the Philippines! Some may not be as dramatic as these, but many are. What would you do?

It is very easy for people to say, “Well, all you have to do is say 'No.' " We would like to challenge these people to come to the Philippines (or India or Uganda or Mexico or Colombia), join a missions team, and be in a position to say “No."

We would like to encourage many to participate with many excellent missions in dealing with problems like these. Additional missionaries are especially needed to reach out to others in the name of Christ, to ask Him to give wisdom in dealing with situations like these, and encourage men and women to trust Him as Savior.

The need is overwhelming and the opportunities are staggering. What can we do?…All we can!

The Bible

Casper ten Boom, the father of the well- known Corrie ten Boom, was a watch maker and a real student of the Bible.

He had a study group meeting in his home made up of philosophers, agnostics, atheists, fundamentalists and liberals all with a quest for knowledge.

Without formal educational training, Casper ten Boom could debate the most brilliant with the book, the Bible, he knew so well. He battled some, converted others, and had the honest respect of all.

None were able to escape his direct answers to complex problems. He would always say when the arguments became involved, "The Bible says!"

Mr. ten Boom had nothing against philosophy, but believed in a philosophy of living based upon the Word of God. 

- In My Father's House (pages 111-112)

Thank God Without Ceasing

by John Hendryx

We affirm with the Bible that whosoever believes in Jesus Christ (without exception) will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). That has never been at issue. Problem is, no one is naturally willing to submit to the humbling terms of the gospel, apart from regenerating grace (Deut 29:4, 30:6; Ezek 36:26; John 1:13; 5:21, 6:63-65, Rom 8:7, 1 Cor 2:14). Indeed, God commands all people everywhere to repent and believe (Acts 17:30), so it is man's responsibility, but men naturally love darkness, hate the light and will not come into the light (John 3:19, 20) So even after God has given all men opportunity, what is amazing is not that He saves only some of us, but rather, why He saves any of us at all. Even though man is so obstinate, God still yet extends his mercy to us (Rom 9:16). Though no one will come to Jesus on their own, the Spirit still has mercy on a great many stiff-necked ill-deserving sinners... In love (Eph 1:4, 5), He opens their blind eyes, unplugs their deaf ears and turns their hearts of stone to hearts of flesh. Some get justice, others get mercy, but no one gets injustice. So if, by the grace of God, you believe the gospel... thank God for Jesus who provided EVERYTHING we need for salvation, including a new heart to believe. Thank God without ceasing.

Source: http://www.monergism.com/blog/thank-god-without-ceasing

Hospitality and Caring for the Needs of Others

As a Christian, do you care about the needs and comfort of others?

This is an important question to answer.

Let us look at a few “when” questions:

When at church, do you greet others especially visitors and the shy? Do you make sure all have a chair? Do your help the ushers and deacons in caring for those attending the service? Do you invite singles and those sitting alone to join you? Do you invite others to join you and family for a meal after church and pay for them?

When you are eating with others, do you wait until all are served before you begin eating? Do you pass the food and help others or only yourself? Do you teach your fellow workers, family, and children these basics? In a restaurant are you polite and friendly to the workers and do you tip well?

When travelling, do you make sure others have a seat and that women, children, and the elderly are helped and cared for? Do you let others go first? Are you especially helpful to people from other countries? (Helping others opens the door for the gospel.)

When talking to others, are you gracious and kind? Do you say things like, “How are you today?” “Thank you.” “I appreciate your help.” “What is your name?” “You really do well.”

When sharing your home, do not keep your guest guessing. Do you show them where the towels, soap, and shampoo are? Are there places to hang clothes in the bathroom so they do not have to put their clothes on the floor? Do they know where the tea and coffee pots are? Might they have special needs? Be careful about putting them alone with a member of the opposite sex.

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you (Colossians 3:12-13).

Do You Have Any Spoons You Need To Return?

When my father-in-law, Walter Jespersen, could still drive we took several people out for Sunday dinner at a buffet restaurant about eight miles from our home.

When Dad was going through the line, he put his knife, fork, spoon and napkin in the upper pocket of his suit coat while he served the food onto his plate.

Later that day, he noticed the spoon from the restaurant in his coat pocket and was very bothered by this. He had used the other utensils but had forgotten about the spoon.

I told him that we would return the spoon later in the week when we passed by the restaurant, or we could mail it to them. However, the next day, Dad was still very bothered that he had taken the spoon. Even though driving had become very difficult for him, he decided to drive to the restaurant to return the spoon and apologize.

Being a godly man, Dad was not overly sensitive but was sensitive to truth, error and what it takes to live a godly life in an uncaring, wicked world. He is the kind of man we should all emulate!

So, I have asked myself this question quite often, “Do I have any spoons to return?” In other words, is there anything I need to take care of today? Do I need to apologize, return a favor, minister to others, show graciousness, display goodness or share the gospel?

What do I need to take care of today so that I will be more like Jesus?

Our Working Definition of Counseling

 by Paul Tautges.

The definition that we work to develop here at Counseling One Another is as follows: Biblical counseling is an intensely focused and personal aspect of the discipleship process, whereby believers come alongside one another for three main purposes: first, to help each other consistently apply Scriptural theology to life in order to experience victory over sin through obedience to Christ; second, by warning each other, in love, of the consequences of sinful actions; and third, by leading each other to make consistent progress in the ongoing process of biblical change in order that we may become spiritually reproductive followers of Jesus Christ. This definition describes the aim of biblical discipleship. Basically, biblical counseling is helping one another, within the body of Christ, to grow to maturity in Him. Read more …