What are your thoughts on Awana? Do you have children that have done Awana? What did you think? Tell me the positives and negatives. Thank you. (please recommend this post to your friends so that I can get a lot of people's thoughts on this program)

If you have no idea what Awana is here is what I have found so far on the web. (Many churches do it) It seems to be an expensive program with Parents needing to pay for workbooks, vests and things like that.

Awana is an acronym for Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed, from 2 Timothy 2:15. The organization supplies local churches with weekly clubs, programs and Bible training for students in preschool through high school.

Participants typically meet once a week throughout the school year. The focus of the curriculum is on the presentation of the gospel and Scripture memorization. Most programs include a group teaching time, individual one-on-one time with a leader to review the lessons learned that week, and a time for games.

For each child or teen the components of the program include:

   1. a handbook that allows each child to learn at their own pace;
   2. a uniform shirt or vest, and;
   3. awards that are earned as the child or teen successfully completes the requirements of a section of the handbook, usually including Scripture memorization.

Awana is a non-denominational program and licenses the curriculum to any church willing to pay for and use the Awana materials consistent with its principles

What are your thoughts on Awana?

Ok I will soon be leaving the world of dial up. I will be entering for the first time ever the world of DSL.

It will be a few weeks until I get the DSL, but soon.

Which would you get.......

Speed
Download/Upload     12 Month Promotional Rate
256K/256K                     $19.95/mo.
1.5M/256K                      $19.95/mo.

This is cheaper then what we pay for dial up and it is a local company with local tech support rather then in India like the dial up service I am using now.

What is the difference between 256k and 1.5m? Which would you get if it was you?

Tonight I watched "Whale Wars" on the Animal Planet. I think it is a really good show. It is about the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

They try to protect the whales from the people who kill them illegally. Some people think they are heroes. Some people think they are eco-terrorists.

During Sea Shepherd's Antarctic Whale Defense Campaign: Operation Migaloo in 2007/08, Animal Planet had a camera crew on board a campaign that saved the lives of nearly 500 whales, leaving the Japanese fleet with less then half of their quota and costing them tens of millions of dollars.  This new seven-part, hour-long weekly series follows the crew of the Sea Shepherd vessel, Steve Irwin as they use non-violent direct action techniques that garner world wide media attention in an effort to shut down the illegal Japanese whaling fleet and enforce international conservation

Their Website

Sea Shepherd has been criticized for dangerous protests and cutting driftnets, and accused of piracy. Its critics include the Japanese Institute of Cetacean Research.

Supporters and endorsers of Sea Shepherd include well known people such as Richard Dean Anderson, Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, and the Fresh Handmade Cosmetics company, Lush.

What are your thoughts on the show? What are your thoughts on Sea Shepherd Conservation Society?

My 7 year old daughter cried this morning. Why you may ask....because Obama won the election.

We don't talk a lot about politics in our home but they were talking a lot about it in school. They even had a "school election" and McCain won.

My daughter wanted McCain to win sooo bad.

She was so upset. We reminded her that God is in control. We also let her know that Obama is who we will have to follow and pray for if we wanted him to win or not. UNLESS he tells us to go against something God says.

Did you hear about the voter intimidation in Philly?

There are some black panthers trying to intimidate people into voting for Obama. Also trying to keep the press (Fox news) out.

The cops were called and the black panther with the weapon was taken away but the other black panthers are still there continuing the intimidation.

We, as Christians, need to get on our knees. We need to pray for revival in this Land. We need to pray for revival in America. No matter who wins the election, God is in control. We need to weep for this county. We need to cry for the lost in this county. We need to be broken before the Lord. We need revival in this country. We need to pray and fast for revival.

Revelation 13:1-3 KJV  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a
beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and
upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 
(2)  And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet
were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and
the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.  (3) 
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly
wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

The spirit of antichrist is at work in this world today, but one day this spirit of Antichrist will find its ultimate fulfillment in THE ANTICHRIST

The Blasphemous names are against the true and living God, for which sinful man opposes.  Daniel also speaks of the unbridled tongue of this man, the Antichrist, when he says in Daniel 7:25a, "He shall speak pompous words against the Most High . . ."

Who will give the Antichrist his power?  Satan will give him the power to rule the world!  In fact, I believe it will be Satan himself who will possess this man.  In history there has been one other instance that we know of where Satan has possessed someone himself, and that was Judas Iscariot. We are told of this in Luke 22:3, which says, "Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve."  The other person that Satan will indwell is the Antichrist and I believe this takes place at the 3 1/2-year mark of the 7-year Tribulation Period as Satan is cast out of heaven, the Antichrist goes into the rebuilt temple and demands to be worshiped as God.

Be a force in politics – PRAY!

I'm not one to usually talk a lot about getting involved in politics, but there is an area we are commanded to be involved in.

1 Timothy 2:1-4 KJV I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; {2} For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. {3} For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; {4} Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

Here, this could have two ideas –

1. A nation will cease, then rise again.

Perhaps it could refer to a nation that was in decline, then comes back.

2. The individual will die, then recover miraculously. (Zech.11:15-17)

The book of Zechariah talks about two shepherds, a good one and a bad one. The good one is Jesus Christ (Zech.13:7). The bad one is Antichrist.

Zechariah 11:15-17 KJV And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd. {16} For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces. {17} Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

Because of this passage, it has been suggested that the Antichrist will have an assassination attempt made on his life, which will leave him scarred with a bad right arm and a blind right eye.

I'm not sure anyone is going to know who the antichrist is for sure until the day that he steps into the temple, stops the sacrifice, and demands to be worshipped.

Next Sunday

Sunday November 9th is the
International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Every year
thousands of churches and individuals around the globe remember the
suffering church on this day.

The International Day of Prayer
for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) is a global day of intercession for
persecuted Christians worldwide.

Prayer changes things. God
invites us to present to Him our requests and to pray without ceasing.
Persecuted Christians often plead for prayer to help them endure. The
most we can do is the least we can do — pray.

Christian girls are kidnapped and forced to Islam
College students risk expulsion or worse if they profess the Word of God
Pastors who give their lives for their faith, leave behind traumatized children

Order a free IDOP kit for your church or small group

Over
200 million Christians around the world suffer persecution. Depending
on the country, each form of persecution is different. But it is real,
and its threat to the Church is serious.

The world’s worst persecutor of Christians in the world is North Korea.

In Saudi Arabia, practicing Christianity can result in death by beheading or stoning.

Over 90% of China’s Christians worship in hidden, underground house churches to avoid government regulations and restrictions.

There is only one Christian church left in the Gaza Strip, and its membership has dwindled to less than 100.

Algeria is about a quarter of the size of Texas, and only 3% of the population are Christians.

There
are 69 languages in Iran, and only three of them have a completed
Bible. Iran is also the third worst persecutor of Christians in the
world.

It is believed there are less than 500 Christians living in the Maldives.

Open preaching in Sudan is punishable by beatings or imprisonment.

Christians make up less than 1.7% of the population in Pakistan, and over 70% of them are the poorest of the poor.

It is estimated that there are 1,100 Christian missionaries living in Turkey.

Front view of their outfits

Back view

All of us at the Harvest party

Pastor Chris as one of the bible characters (for the guess who I am game)

Another bible person

Another Bible person

The balloon maker

Youngest with Spiderman balloon

Son with Puppy balloon

Daughter with Kitten balloon

Veggie tale puppet show (God is bigger then the boogie man)

The other puppet show