Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
To receive the email edition of Weekend Encounter (without charge) click on the Subscribe button.
Privacy policy: We do not sell or rent subscriber's e-mail
addresses to anyone. We value your privacy.
Global Communications Outreach:
Learn how to be a missionary right from your own home and have a vital part in worldwide gospel outreach by becoming an ACTS People Power for Jesus Partner. Click HERE There is no charge.
Vol. 13 – No. 4711 November 19, 2011
Thought for the week: "Miracles are not a contradiction of nature. They are only in contradiction to what we know of nature." – St. Augustine
One morning as Professor Thompson was leaving for the college his wife told her absent-minded husband, "Don't forget we are moving today. If you come to this house this afternoon it will be empty."
Predictably he didn't remember until he found the house vacated that afternoon. He mumbled to himself, "And where was it we were moving to?"
He went out in front of the house and asked a little girl, "Did you see a moving van here today, little girl?"
"Yes," she replied.
"Can you tell me which way it went?"
She looked up at him and said, "Yes, Daddy, I'll show you."
In May of 1915, a British passenger ship called the Lusitania carrying 1,962 people was torpedoed by a German submarine as a covert act of war.
In a matter of minutes, the huge ship began to come apart. Within the next few hours, 1,201 passengers and crew died. One of those who went down with the ship was American millionaire Alfred Vanderbilt. Survivors of the Lusitania report that Vanderbilt spent his last moments helping others to safety. He rounded up as many children as he could and got them into lifeboats. Just before the ship went down, Vanderbilt handed his life jacket to a young mother with a baby in her arms.
– "Torpedoed!" by Diana Preston, Smithsonian,
May 2002, pp. 64-65.
In response to last week's edition of Weekend Encounter one reader wrote, "What I am concerned about is that those who read your article who have had an abortion might be put into a deeper depression because of what that article said. I agree with it, but you didn't mention that there is forgiviness of this sin. I know the point you were making and I agree, but I am concerned that some might read it and not know that they can be forgiven of such a sin as this. I know women that have had abortions who live in a great depression over their sin. I just want them to know that they can seek forgiviness."
Dear W.E. reader, Yes, of course, a woman who has had an abortion is forgiven by God if she confesses her sin and asks God for forgiveness just as he forgives any and all other sins which have been confessed. The important thing is that she then learns to forgive herself, which people who have perfectionistic tendencies find very difficult to do. If this is so, their problem has more to do with this tendency rather than finding forgiveness.
God's Word says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
I ran into a stranger as he passed by,
"Oh, excuse me please" was my reply.
He said, "Please excuse me too;
I wasn't watching for you."
We were very polite, this stranger and I.
We went on our way and we said good-bye.
But at home a different story is told,
How we treat our loved ones, young and old.
Later that day, cooking the evening meal,
My son stood beside me very still.
When I turned, I nearly knocked him down.
"Move out of the way," I said with a frown.
He walked away, his little heart broken.
I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.
While I lay awake in bed,
God's still small voice came to me and said,
"While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use,
But the children you love, you seem to abuse.
Go and look on the kitchen floor,
You'll find some flowers there by the door.
Those are the flowers he brought for you.
He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue.
He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise,
You never saw the tears that filled his little eyes."
By this time, I felt very small,
And now my tears began to fall.
I quietly went and knelt by his bed;
"Wake up, little one, wake up," I said.
"Are these the flowers you picked for me?"
He smiled, "I found 'em, out by the tree.
I picked 'em because they're pretty like you.
I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue."
I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today;
I shouldn't have yelled at you that way."
He said, "Oh, Mom, that's okay.
I love you anyway."
I said, "Son, I love you too, and
I do like the flowers, especially the blue."
In a Texas classroom, children were told to draw a tracing of their foot, and then put a message on the drawing. One little girl wrote "Jesus Loves Me" on hers. What happened next shows the abysmal state of religious tolerance in America.
As Fox news anchor John Gibson relates in his book, The War on Christmas, the child's teacher ripped the tracing off the board. "Don't you ever do this again," she said. The little girl burst into tears.
When her outraged father called the school, nervous officials told the child to make another tracing. She did so—but this time, instead of scrawling "Jesus Loves Me," she drew a tiny cross that was so small it was almost invisible.
This little girl had learned her lesson well. Her Christian faith was something shameful—and she should keep it to herself.
And this little girl is not the only child learning this ugly lesson. In a Plano, Texas, classroom, a teacher told students not to write "Merry Christmas" on greeting cards for soldiers in Iraq because it might offend someone. They were even forbidden to say "Merry Christmas" to their classmates. And this, in Plano, Texas?
In a New York school, the halls were decked with menorahs and Kwanzaa candles. When a father asked why there was no Christmas tree, the principal said, "Oh, we're trying to make sure we don't offend people."
In Maplewood, New Jersey, fifth-graders were asked to make posters demonstrating diversity. A boy named Anton pasted on the Star of David and a Muslim symbol. When his mother suggested he add a Christian symbol, he said, "No, I don't want to offend anyone." These kids are being brain-washed.
Every December, symbols of Christmas are treated like pornography, sex, or second-hand smoke—things that ought to be enjoyed in private, lest others be offended.
According to Gibson, people who treat Christian symbols this way are acting out of a deep-seated hostility toward all things Christian. They're often offended by Christianity on an intellectual level. They think it's a crutch used by the less intelligent.
And since they have begun losing battles in the courts, they've opened up a new front called "inclusiveness." Yes, they admit, the Supreme Court says it's okay to have Christmas trees on public property—but do we really want to offend neighbors who don't celebrate Christmas? The same goes for Christmas music and candy canes in schools; somewhere, someone might be offended. But isn't it strange that, in case after case, only Christian symbols seem to have the power to offend?
Well, many Christians have had enough, and they're fighting back. For help, they're turning to religious liberties groups that have sprung up to defend our First Amendment rights. Among these are the ACLJ, the Thomas More Law Center, the Alliance Defense Fund, and the Beckett Fund.
Parents are right to resist efforts to try to teach their kids that Christian symbols—and the faith they represent—are inherently offensive. In a country that honors religious freedom, the real offense is not saying "Merry Christmas" to a friend, but in teaching kids that expressing their faith is something to be ashamed of.
"Dear Brothers [and Sisters], is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow. So let it grow, and don't try to squirm out of your problems. For when your patience is finally in full bloom, then you will be ready for anything, strong in character, full and complete" (James 1:2-4, TLB).
In almost every trial we face God is seeking to "tell" us something. Sometimes the only time he can get our attention is when we're hurting sufficiently to slow us down so we will stop and listen.
That has certainly been true in my life. On one occasion, God used an accident and a time in the hospital to get my attention and to "speak" to me. The decision I made as a result ended up radically changing the total course of my life. Another time God used a major crisis and loss to expand my work. He used another setback to get me started in writing. That was more than three decades ago and I'm still writing!
When you are hurting, you can be sure that God has something to say to you too—something for your good. Ask him to help you hear what it is and to give you the courage to do what he is telling/leading you to do. Whatever it is, you can be certain it will enrich your life in one way or another.
Furthermore, whatever you do, don't waste your pain. Invest it in your own growth and then in helping another fellow struggler along the way.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me to see how you want to use all the trials that come my way to help me grow and change my life for the better. And please help me never to waste my pain but to invest it wisely in my own growth and in making me a more effective helper to other fellow strugglers. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."
Daily Encounter, a free weekday e-mail inspirational from ACTS International is now going to 409,000+ subscribers. Scores of letters from around the world have come from readers saying how much they are being helped by this brief, practical devotional.
Over 100 million e-mail Daily, Weekend and Prayer Encounters are delivered to subscribers every year!
NOTE: Some ISPs (especially AOL) now use e-mail filtering software that allows you to add e-mail addresses to your 'buddy', 'safe', or 'approved' list. Please be sure to add acts@actsweb.org to yours so you won't miss any issue of Daily Encounter.
NOTE: Some ISPs (especially AOL) now use e-mail filtering software that allows you to add e-mail addresses to your 'buddy', 'safe', or 'approved' list. Please be sure to add acts@actsweb.org to yours so you won't miss any issue of Weekend Encounter.
One of ACTS greatest needs is Prayer Partners to stand with us as we seek to share the gospel with millions of people around the world through E-mail and the Internet and to win the lost to Jesus. If you would like to be an ACTS Prayer Partner, please subscribe to the Prayer Encounter list. Approximately two prayer reports are emailed monthly. Thank you.
If you have a special prayer request please submit it to David Clark at: www.responda.co.uk/prayer.php. David is not on the ACTS staff but is offering this as a service to Daily and Weekend Encounter readers.
Helpers Needed: If you can help David pray for prayer requests, please could you go to: www.responda.co.uk/member.php
Weekend Encounter and Daily Encounter are just two of the ways the nonprofit organization, ACTS International, is working to improve the spiritual and emotional life of many thousands of people around the world.
Every weekday Daily Encounter is going to 409,000+ subscribers, and every week Weekend Encounter is going to 7.986 subscribers worldwide—many of whom are in places where it is forbidden to spread the Christian gospel and message. Plus we reach several hundred thousand more every week through our advertising. As a result every day we are seeing an average of 5-6 salvation responses from around the world—over 3,000 in the past 10 months!
If you find value in the free Weekend Encounter and/or Daily Encounter, we hope you will be comfortable donating at least $26. That's only 50 cents a week for an entire year (tax-deductible in the U.S.). You can donate in one of the following ways:
15. Helpful Books, CDs, DVDs, and Cassette Messages
Oprah Winfrey: "Books were my pass to personal freedom. I learned to read at age three, and soon discovered there was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi." – Oprah Winfrey
Books:
Books by Dick Innes, Editor of Weekend Encounter You Can't Fly With a Broken Wing How to Mend a Broken Heart I Hate Witnessing—A Handbook for Effective Christian
Communications
Books by Bestseller and Popular Authors: The Miracle of Kindness His Needs, Her Needs by Willard F. Harley, Jr.
has topped the charts as the best marriage
book available. More than one million couples
have read it ... made their marriage sizzle. Fall in Love Stay in Love Just Hand Over the Chocolate ... Love, Sex, and Lasting Relationships Sex Starts in the Kitchen Making Children Mind Without Losing Yours Harried With Children Adolescence Is Not an Illness Show Time It Takes a Church to Raise a Christian
On Sale at: http://www.actscom.com/store
CDs, DVDs, and Cassettes:
Healing, Wholeness & Happiness by Dick Innes
Loving & Understanding People by Dick Innes
I Hate Witnessing by Dick Innes
God's Formula for Success by Dick Innes
Damaged Emotions by David Seamands Healing of the Memories by David Seamands...
On SALE at:http://actscom.com/store/
1. For FREE Bible concordance and Bible helps
2. FREE: New Hope Crisis Counseling with trained
lay/volunteer counselors. www.newhopenow.org 3. E-Word Today for a daily Bible reading
4. To find your ZIP+4 Area Code in the U.S.A.
5. How to find and write to your U.S. Representative
6. ASK Jeeves ... your questions answered fast
7. Send a FREE greeting card for all occasions
8. To check the weather in your area
9. Hoax Web Sites
10. Plus many more sources of helpful information
