This week I've had the privilege to speak to children at Camp CoBeAc in Prudenville, Michigan. Most of my growing up years were done here in Michigan and so it is a treat to be in my "homeland." I actually attended Camp CoBeAc (www.cobeac.org) growing up. Pastor Bob Wall (now Pastor in Fostoria, Michigan) brought us teens over here for a few Winter retreats and some basketball camps if memory serves me right. I'll never forget the midnight pop can war we had in the cabin one night (sans Pastor Wall)!

Jeff Kahl is the director of Camp CoBeAc and has been a special blessing to me over the years. I served under Jeff at Northland Camp and Conference center during the summers of 1995 and 1996. There are a few qualities that you can't help but notice about Jeff: #1 Jeff is friendly,  #2 Jeff hates trash...especially on the ground/floor, and #3 Jeff is concerned about unity amongst Christians. One thing is for certain, you won't be able to entirely figure him out, and I think that is a good thing. Jeff will sharpen and deepen your thinking about a great many things. I praise God for Jeff Kahl and the solid ministry he is having here in God's country. :-) 

Oh, one more thing...Jeff is a former "bus kid." He rode a bus to a Baptist church. He ironed his sweatpants to look the best he possibly could on Sunday. In my humble opinion Jeff is the kind of person that remains the best kind of argument FOR a bus ministry in local churches. In my mind I imagine someone giving Jeff a hundred reasons against a bus ministry with him graciously nodding and listening. Then, at the end of the discourse, Jeff sighing, looking down, putting his hands on his knees, looking back up and stating: "You know, I was a bus kid." I do hope that happens someday if it hasn't already! 

Jon Vandenburg the program director here has also been a special blessing to me the last couple of years. I have thorougly enjoyed our late (very late) night Taco Bell trips. Think of it as "camp fuel." 

Pearson Johnson is here as a sponsor. He serves as an assistant pastor at Inter-City Baptist Church in Detroit, MI. Pearson (we used to call him "PJ" back in the day) is a friend from my summers at Northland Camp. He has been blogging about the week of camp and has posted several very good pictures. View the blog and the pics here: http://homebuildersonline.wordpress.com/

I am posting the following article by Machen in its entirety for two main reasons:

1. You should acquaint yourself with the late J. Gresham Machen. He will sharpen you!

2. The thoughts and truths in this essay resonate deep within my soul! If you want to get an idea of the solid, biblical philosophy upon which we tried to build Kids 4 Truth curriculum, this is a fabulous summary of why we did and do what we did and do!

******begin essay*******

HAVING considered with you the question what kind of book the Bible is, I think it is now high time that we should open up that book together and find out what is in it. We have shown that the Bible is worth reading, because it is the Word of God. Well, if it is worth reading, let us now begin to read it and see whether we can discover what it contains. What does the Bible teach?

I had in my mind a very good answer to that question when I was so very young as to have very little else in my mind. It is the answer to the third question in the Shorter Catechism, and it seems to me to be a very good thing. There are one hundred and six other good things in that Catechism. Those are the answers to the others of the one hundred and seven questions. I should certainly not go quite so far as to say what some Presbyterian is accused of having said — that the Shorter Catechism is more important than the Bible because the Shorter Catechism is “the Bible boiled down” — but all the same I am a convinced Presbyterian too, and I do maintain that the Shorter Catechism, with its marvelous comprehensiveness and its faithfulness to Scripture, with its solemnity and its tenderness, is the truest and noblest summary of what the Bible teaches that I have ever seen.

The third question in the Shorter Catechism is the question in which I am interested just now: “What do the Scriptures principally teach?” The answer is: “The Scriptures principally teach, what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.”

The thing that I want you to notice about this answer is that it makes the Scriptures principally teach, first, what man is to believe and, second, what man is to do. It puts truth before conduct, doctrine before life. It makes truth the foundation of conduct and doctrine the foundation of life.

Today the order is commonly reversed. Life comes first, we are told, and doctrine comes afterwards. Religion is first an experience and only secondarily a doctrine. Doctrine is merely an expression of religious experience, and although the experience remains essentially the same its doctrinal expression must change as the generations pass. So, it is said, we value the great creeds of the Church not at all because we regard as true, in the plain man’s sense of the word “true,” the things that they contain, but because they expressed in the language of a by — gone day an experience which We can still share. So it is also, we are told, with the Bible. It is a great mistake, we are told, to take what the Bible says about Jesus as being true in the ordinary sense of the word “true”; but it is a still greater mistake to miss the experience which underlies what the Bible says. Thus when the Bible says that Jesus was born of a virgin, we do not, of course, it is said, believe that any physical miracle took place in connection with the birth of Jesus nineteen hundred years ago. But we do think that the men of that day were giving expression to something very precious when they said that, and we ought not to miss that very precious thing. Thus also, it is said, when people of long ago said that Jesus was God, they were of course meaning by that expression something that we do not at all accept. They meant that a heavenly person who had existed from all eternity came into this world by a voluntary act when Jesus of Nazareth was born. We do not at all believe that, say the persons whose views we are now summarizing; on the contrary, we believe that the person Jesus never existed before he was born in that Jewish family. Well, then, shall we just reject what those persons said when they declared Jesus to be God? Not at all, it is said. They were giving true expression, it is said, in the language of their day, to something that is just as precious to us as it was to them. They could not possibly give expression to it in any other language. If they had tried to give expression to it in our language, that would for them have been utterly false and futile. Do we then still believe in the deity of Christ? Oh, yes — as the expression of a great experience. That experience is the really essential thing, but the intellectual expression of it must necessarily change from age to age.

Such is the attitude that is dominant in the religious world of our day—religion as an experience and doctrine as just the necessarily changing expression of the experience; life first and creed as just the changing expression of it. Those are the shibboleths that designate the prevailing attitude.

What shall we think of that attitude? Well, in the first place, I think we ought to face clearly the fact that it is an attitude of the most complete unbelief that could possibly be imagined. It denies not this truth or that but truth itself. It denies that there is any possibility of attaining to a truth which will always be true. There is truth, it holds, for this generation and truth for that generation, but no truth for all generations; there is truth for this race and truth for that race, but no. truth for all races.

I remember some years ago that I read a paper at a conference of theological professors on the subject of “revelation.” I read a paper and then another professor read a paper, and then still other professors made remarks about the papers. One of those latter professors said that although he disagreed with me completely, and agreed much more with my opponent, yet he was bound to say he thought that so far as the definition of terms was concerned I was a good deal nearer than my opponent to the historic meaning of the term “revelation.” I thought that was very encouraging. But then he went on to say that even I did not mean the same thing by that term as people used to mean by it, Then he developed, with more or less clearness, the view that in general words are bound to change their meaning so that we never mean by the words that we use what past generations meant by them.

At any rate, whether that was what that particular professor said or not, I think it does represent what a good many people are saying. A good many people seem to think that every generation lives in a sort of intellectual water — tight compartment, without much chance of converse with other generations. Every generation has its own thought — forms and cannot by any chance use the thought — forms of any other generation. Do you know what I think of this notion? I think it comes very near being nonsense. If it were true, then books produced in past generations ought to be pure gibberish to us.

Take any book of Aristotle, for example. Aristotle lived some three and a half centuries before Christ. That book of Aristotle is composed of thousands of words. When Aristotle wrote the book it made sense, because the writer knew the meaning of every one of those thousands of words. Knowing the meaning of those words, he could fit them together so that the resulting book would make sense. But then, according to the theory with which we are now dealing, the meaning of every one of those words began to wobble, and has been wobbling for twenty — two centuries. Of course the words would not all wobble to just exactly the same extent and in exactly the same direction. That would be a chance too remote to be considered. The probabilities against it would be ten billion or more to one. Very well, then. What will inevitably be the result? The result, after twenty — two centuries of wobbling, will be that all those thousands of words will be completely out of alignment and the resulting book will be a meaningless jumble.

Yes, that will be the inevitable result if that professorial theory as to the inevitable shift in the meanings of words is correct. But the trouble is that that inevitable result is not the actual result. As a matter of fact, that book of Aristotle is just as limpidly clear and logical today as it ever was. What does that show? It shows that the theory that we have been dealing with is untrue. It shows that as a matter of fact words do not change their meaning in that kaleidoscopic way. It shows that there is an intellectual gold standard which enables us to carry on commerce perfectly well with the men of past generations.

What is true of different ages in the history of man-kind is also true of different races co-existing today. People say that Western creeds ought not to be forced upon the Oriental mind. The Oriental mind, they say, ought to be allowed to go its own way and give its own expressions to the Christian faith. Well, I have examined one or two of those supposed expressions of the Oriental mind, and I am bound to say that they look to me uncommonly like the expressions of the mind of the South Side of Chicago. But how about it? Ought we to give our Western creeds to the Oriental mind? I shall just pass over the question whether those so — called Western creeds are really Western. Let us call them “Western creeds” in quotation marks and for the sake of the argument. Ought those Western creeds to be given to the Oriental mind? What is our answer?

The answer is: “Certainly.” Of course those Western creeds ought to be given to the Oriental mind. But that ought to be done only on one condition — that those Western creeds are true. If they are not true, they ought not to be given to the Oriental mind or to any other kind of mind; but if they are true, they are just as true in China as they are in the United States.

The truth is that although I am thought by some of my friends to be very gullible, believing as I do that the Bible is true and that miracles really happened, there are some things about which I am a confirmed skeptic. Frankly, I do not believe in the separate existence of an Oriental mind or an Occidental mind or an ancient mind or a medieval mind or a modern mind. I do believe indeed that different races of mankind have different aptitudes or talents. It is perhaps true that French writers have the special gift of clearness, while Germans are characterized by a power of metaphysical speculation and by a certain solidity and thoroughness of learning. It must be admitted, indeed, that some German writers are admirably clear and some French writers, on the other hand, are awfully muddled. But still I suppose it is true to a very considerable extent that clearness is especially a French virtue of style. I have a great respect also for the intellectual gifts of Oriental peoples. I have no doubt but that those peoples are contributing something very valuable, and are going to contribute something still more valuable, to the intellectual life of the world.

But the really important thing is that under all fluctuations between this age and that age, between this nation and that nation, there is a gold standard of truth. We may misunderstand ancient writers, but our very recognition of the possibility of misunderstanding them shows that there is also a possibility of understanding them. I may have difficulty in understanding the mental processes of the Chinese and the Japanese, as they have difficulty in understanding mine; but the very fact that we can both detect that difficulty affords hope that the difficulty may be overcome, since the fact that we can detect that difficulty shows that there is a common intellectual ground upon which we can stand.

I think, therefore, that we can safely resist the bottomless skepticism which holds that all that remains constant from generation to generation is an experience that must clothe itself in ever — changing intellectual forms I think that we may safely resist the skepticism which holds that the convictions of one generation can never by any chance be the convictions of another.

But are convictions important? Many people say that they are not. It does nor make much difference, they say, what a man believes; life is the thing that counts. But merely saying a thing often does not make the thing true. As a matter of fact it does make a tremendous difference what a man believes.

A modern French novelist wrote in 1889 a very interesting book to show that that is the case. I have just been re-reading it, and I find it almost as impressive as I found it when I read it the first time. The novelist who wrote it is hardly to be put in the first rank of French writers. But this one book of his is certainly worth reading. Some years ago I was talking about it to a French lecturer and critic who was inclined to be very severe upon this writer. But then I said that I had read one book of this writer and that it seemed to my poor judgment to be a masterpiece. “Yes,” said the critic with whom I was talking; “that particular book of this writer is indeed a masterpiece.” The book that I am referring to is the novel by Paul Bourget entitled Le Disciple, “The Disciple.” It describes, with a delicacy of touch in which French writers excel, the simple and austere life of a noted philosopher and psychologist. He was engrossed altogether in the things of the mind. His lodging was up four flights of stairs. His daily existence was an invariable routine. Coffee at six o’clock, lunch or breakfast at ten, walk until noon, work again until four, visits of scholars and students three times a week from four to six, dinner at six, short walk, work, bed promptly at ten. An inoffensive, scholarly man if there ever was one, a man who, in the words of his caretaker, “wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

But one day this peaceful routine was strangely broken into. The philosopher was summoned to a criminal inquest. A former pupil of his was accused of murder. He had been a brilliant young man, who had climbed those four flights of stairs full of enthusiasm for what he regarded as liberating doctrines. He had drunk in those doctrines only too well. In the prison he wrote an account of his life for the eye of his revered master. In it the abstract becomes concrete. The terrible story is told of the way in which those supposedly liberating doctrines work out in actual practice.

It is rather a tremendous little book — that study of “The Disciple” by Paul Bourget.

But the same tragedy as that which is so powerfully depicted in that little book is appearing on a gigantic scale in the whole history of our times. Fifty or even twenty — five years ago, certain views about God and about the Bible might have seemed to a superficial observer to be perfectly respectable and perfectly innocent — as harmless and as remote from anything like tragedy as Bourget’s philosopher up his four flights of stairs. It was such a sweet, pleasant thing — that older Modernism, or “Liberalism,” as it was euphemistically called. But today it is having its perfect work. It is destroying civil and religious liberty; it is defiling the sweetness and gentleness of the Christian home; it is causing contracts public and private to be explained away, until the man or the nation that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not is regarded as a curious relic of the past. Do you look with complacency upon this world where purity and honesty and liberty are regarded as out of date? Do you think it is going to be a pleasant world to live in? If you do, you are blind. You have to be pretty blind not to see that mankind is today standing over an abyss.

Do not be deceived, my friends. This notion that it does not make much difference what a man believes, this notion that doctrine is unimportant and that life comes first, is one of the most devilish errors that are to be found in the whole of Satan’s arsenal. How many human lives it has wrecked, how many mothers’ hearts it has broken! That French novelist is entirely right. Our of the Pandora box of highly respectable philosophy come murders, adulteries, lies and every evil thing.

Well, I have been talking about various things. It might look as though I had forgotten all about the thing I started out to talk about. It might look as though I had forgotten all about the Bible. But indeed that is not the case. I have been talking about these other things, I have been talking about the snarl into which men have come, only in order that at the last I may lead you to the place where that snarl may be straightened out. What does the Bible say about the question that we have been discussing this afternoon? What does the Bible say about the question whether doctrine is merely the changing expression of life or whether — the other way around — life is founded upon doctrine?

You do not have to read very far in the Bible in order to get the answer. The answer is given to you in the first verse. Does the Bible begin with exhortation; does it begin with a program of life? No, it begins with a doctrine. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” That is the foundation doctrine upon which everything else that the Bible says is based.

The Bible does present a way of life; it tells men the way in which they ought to live. But always when it does so it grounds that way of life in truth.

Run through the Bible in your minds, my friends, and see whether I am nor right.

In the Old Testament a wonderful program of life is presented. It is called the Ten Commandments. But do the Ten Commandments begin with commandments? Not at all. They begin with doctrine. “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” That is the preface to the Ten Commandments. It is not a commandment. It is not a program. It is a doctrine. Only because that doctrine is true — only because the one speaking in the commandments is the Lord God — have the commandments any authority.

The Old Testament contains another wonderful presentation of the way in which men should live. Like the Ten Commandments it was quoted by Jesus. It reads: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” That is a wonderful commandment indeed—that commandment of love. But does it begin with a commandment? Not at all. It begins with a doctrine. It is grounded upon a doctrine. “Hear, O Israel,” says the passage in Deuteronomy: “The Lord our God is one Lord, And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy. might.” Only because that doctrine is true has the commandment any meaning. Only because there is one God only and only because that one God is Jehovah are God’s people commanded to love that one God with all their heart and soul and might.

Turn then to the New Testament. The New Testament tells us how Jesus came. Did He come in the modern fashion telling people that it made no difference what they believed and that the thing for them to do was just to live the life first and then afterwards give doctrinal expression to the life?

Well, He did come presenting to them a life that they should live. “Repent,” He said, when He came forward in His public ministry in Galilee. But is that all that He said? Did He just say: “Repent, repent, repent, repent, repent”? Not at all. He said: “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” “The kingdom of heaven is at hand” is not a command or a program. It is a doctrine; and upon that doctrine the command of Jesus to repent is based.

Jesus sat one day by the well, and talked to a sinful woman. In the course of the conversation He laid His finger upon the sore spot in that woman’s life. “Thou hast had five husbands,” He said; “and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband.” Then, apparently to evade the disconcerting question of the sin in her own life, the woman asked Jesus a theological question about the right place in which to worship God — whether on Mount Gerizim or in Jerusalem. What did Jesus do with that woman’s theological question? Did He brush it aside after the manner of certain modern religious workers? Did He say: “You are evading the real question; we will take up your theological question afterwards, but now let us come back to the question of the sin in your own life.” No, He did nothing of the kind. He answered that woman’s theological question with the utmost fulness as though the woman’s soul depended on her getting the right answer. Not Gerizim, He said, but Jerusalem is the place in which to worship God, but the time is coming when the worship of God will be bound to no set places. And then, in response to that sinful, unconverted woman’s question Jesus engaged in some of the profoundest theological teaching in the whole of the Bible. Apparently Jesus regarded a right doctrine of God not as something that comes along after salvation but as something necessary to salvation.

At the beginning of the Book of Acts Jesus is said to have told His disciples to be witnesses unto Him. On the day of Pentecost, a few days later, Peter arose to obey that command. He preached that great sermon which is found in the second chapter of Acts. What did he say in that sermon? He had not had some advantages which men have today. He had not had the inestimable advantage of modern “religious education.” If he had had, no doubt he would have told the people that it did not make any difference what doctrine they held about Jesus or about anything else, and that life was the only thing that mattered. But poor Peter! He had not had the advantage of modern religious education. He had to content himself with another advantage — he had just been filled with the Holy Ghost. The result is that his sermon is doctrinal through and through. He just gave them the facts about Jesus. Not a bit of exhortation, nothing about a program. Just facts, facts, facts, doctrine, doctrine, doctrine. What was the result? They were “pricked in their hearts.” Then Peter told them what to do. Three thousand were saved.

So it is everywhere in the Bible, my friends. First doctrine, then life. The Bible from Genesis to Revelation gives not a bit of comfort to the skeptical notion that doctrine is the mere changing and symbolic expression of Christian experience. The Bible founds living everywhere squarely upon truth. God grant that you may all receive that truth for the saving of your souls, and that having been saved you may live true Christian lives upon this earth and then live in God’s presence for evermore!

During the summer, my wife and I live at the Wilds Christian Camp in Brevard, NC (www.wilds.org). We work in the "Junior Boot Camp" program with Tim Meals. Every week, about 230 junior age (3rd-6th grade) boys and girls come to the Wilds' Junior Boot Camp. We love camp ministry. God saved me at camp. God brought my wife and I together at camp. It's a good thing to come away from the "norm" of life for awhile, to be surrounded by God's beautiful creation, and to be saturated with God-centered preaching and teaching. It's a no-brainer, folks.

I'm on "program" staff here which basically means I help facilitate the program. Some weeks I also have the privilege of speaking. This year I began teaching all new chapel messages. The theme of these messages is "Big Christian Words." I have four opportunities to speak, so I cover four "Big Christian" words:

• Tuesday = DEPRAVITY ("I am wicked and I need God!")
• Wednesday = REDEMPTION ("To be rescued through a great purchase!")
• Thursday = SANCTIFICATION
• Friday = GLORIFICATION

I'm concerned about the children learning solid theology. I strive to take meaty doctrinal truth and make it understandable and memorable for young people. I am going to try and post these messages and their corresponding PowerPoint files to this blog later this summer. It is vital that we teach boys and girls solid Christian doctrine! This is the heartbeat of my life and the reason Kids 4 Truth was born.

The Wilds has been a true blessing to the Kids 4 Truth ministry over the years. They have allowed me great freedom to highlight the Kids 4 Truth materials with all the sponsors. Many churches currently using Kids 4 Truth began as a result of visiting the Wilds and learning about Kids 4 Truth there.

I hope to see you at the Wilds this summer!

Sarah and I recently had the opportunity to visit her parents in Rimouski, Quebec. They are missionaries there and have begun the first ever Kids 4 Truth club in the French language. It was thrilling to see these children learning God-focused truth in their native tongue. Please PRAY that God would provide wisdom as we are currently seeking to begin the translation process in the French and Spanish languages.

A few months ago I attended a missions conference where I met the Laney family, missionaries to Papua New Guinea (PNG).  I was greatly inspired by what God had accomplished and was accomplishing through these humble servants in PNG.

A while back, I posted a two-part video that gives a glimpse of the Laney's missionary endeavors. If you have not yet seen those videos, I encourage you to take the time and do so now. It is time well spent.

• Part One: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE1oTNg3a8A
• Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLzl69dcbdw

During the missionary conference the Laney's daughter Nellie gave her testimony. I was deeply impacted to hear a teenager with a biblical focus. I asked Nellie to write down her testimony so I could share it with others. I am happy to present it here on my blog for your edification!

*****BEGIN TESTIMONY*****

My name is Nellie Laney. I am seventeen years old. My family and I are missionaries to tribal people on New Britain Island of Papua New Guinea.

The Lord burdened our hearts for tribal people who were unreached with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and He led us to a very special people in Papua New Guinea, the Kaulong tribal people.

We actually live in the jungle among these tribal people. There are no power lines where we live - the small amount of electricity that we have in our house comes from solar panels and batteries. There are also no telephone lines or internet access where we live either - we only have a two-way radio in which we communicate on. It’s certainly not the ordinary lifestyle, but we have gotten used to it and really enjoy it there. The Kaulong people’s language had never been written down before. For some of them, we were the first white people they had ever seen.

The Kaulong tribal people go barefoot all the time. Some women even wear grass skirts. They live in small huts with dirt floors and leaf roofs. Their houses are built out of materials straight from the jungle. They don’t go to the grocery store, hardware store, or Wal-Mart. They live on the food they grow in their gardens or gather out of the jungle. They also get food by hunting and trapping. They hunt birds with blowguns and animals like wild pigs, they hunt with spears.

The Kaulong tribal people can seem very different, on the outside, but on the inside, they are just like every other person in this world. They are sinners needing a Saviour. The Bible tells us that God created them in the image of Himself and that He loves them. He loves them so much that He sent Jesus to this earth to die for them to pay for their sins. And He wants them to hear this message of Salvation, so they can have an opportunity to believe in Jesus and then spend eternity with Him in heaven.

We have had the privilege of delivering this wonderful message of Salvation to the Kaulong people. The Lord gave us the grace to learn their language and then to teach them God’s Word “God’s Talk” in their own language. We first taught them about God and of who He is. We then taught them about creation, how sin entered into the world, the fall of man, and God’s plan of redemption to redeem man back unto Himself. On this Biblical foundation, we presented the Gospel to them on June 15, 2001. That day over 50 people put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone to save them from their sins! These, who previously had no hope of hearing what Jesus had done for them, unless someone came to them; are now set free through Jesus Christ. By believing in Christ as the only “Bridge” to God the Father, they are now God’s children bound for heaven.

God didn’t stop there! Since that time, many more have been saved! The Kaulong church is just growing and maturing continually! Today there are over two hundred believers! That first Kaulong church has now started/planted two new churches among their own people! They have also started literacy schools in each of those locations as well! Literacy is so very important for the church. By being able to read and write in their own language, they will one day be able to read and study God’s Word for themselves.

God has given us such wonderful relationships with these dear brothers and sisters in Christ! I have so many special and precious Kaulong friends. Our relationships are so special that they view me as part of their earthly family as well and I view them as part of mine.

I have heard many people say that they would never be able to stand it going to a foreign mission field because of the hard way of life, there are too many bugs, the filthiness, there’s no cars, no phones, no shopping malls; the list goes on and on. But, I can tell you, I would not have traded it for anything in the world. I was there. I saw God working every day. I saw lost people be found through Christ and I saw their lives change. When they got saved, the fear that had controlled them their whole life was now gone, replaced with peace, contentment, and joy. They are no longer worshiping demons, but now are worshiping the Almighty God who had created them. What an Awesome God we serve!

Not every Christian is called to go to a foreign country. But every person that has been saved by the blood of Christ, has been given the Great Commission to take the Gospel to wherever He calls. Will you go? Every day people are dying and going into a Christless eternity. People are dying without ever clearly knowing what Christ has done for them, because Christians are not willing to go with the Gospel. “The Harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few...” Luke 10:2 Will you go?

I am only seventeen, but I know that God is calling me to serve Him with my life as a missionary. I don’t know where I’m going yet, but I do know what God wants for me. I’m just trusting Him to take care of the details. When I surrendered my life for His purpose, He gave me such peace and joy. It is a wonderful thing to be in the plan and will of God and directed by His hand. That peace and joy that fills the heart of a true servant of God is something that cannot really be put into words. But I can truly say that I have never regretted giving my life in service to Him and I long to live for Him. I know that you will never regret it either, if you will wholeheartedly surrender to serve the Lord with your life.

People ask me, “Why did you choose to be a missionary, when there are so many other choices for your life?” I tell them, “Because I love my Lord and I know that He has called me to serve Him in this way. It is estimated that there are seven billion people in our world today and soon to be a billion more. The tragedy is, that multitudes of them have never clearly heard what Christ has done for them. To me, that is seven billion reasons to serve my Lord with my life, as a missionary.”

How big is your God? Is your God the One that created the Universe? Is He the One who gives you life and breath, and every day gives you that next heart beat? Remember, only Jesus Christ the Lord, can save people from the eternal “place of fire” as the tribal people call it. But how will they hear unless we tell them? Our great God who created all things and who gives you life and breath and who keeps your heart beating every day, can and will use you to win souls for Him, if you will let Him. Will you go?

Happy in His Service,

Nellie L. Laney

This is inspiring. But be more inspired at Ben's Creator than Ben!

Look how big the Earth is!

Look how big Jupiter is in relation to the Earth!

Look how big the Sun is in relation to Jupiter!

Look how big Arcturus is in relation to the Sun! (((are you feeling very, very small yet?)))

Look how big Antares is in relation to Arcturus!

Look how big GOD is in relation to all this and more...

Isaiah 40:12-18

Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?

Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?

Disclaimer: I received these pictures in an email and have been unable to locate the origin to give proper credit.

GROWTH AND PROGRESS IN 2007

In 2007, we worked to add to and fine-tune the resources and customer support/service for the Kids 4 Truth clubs. We have accomplished this goal by completing and implementing several projects.

Main Website: Major Steps Toward 2008 New Version

Our main website continues to be incredibly popular, averaging about 2 million hits per month! We hope to launch the site’s brand-new design in 2008. We are seeking to improve the site’s usability, while deciding what to highlight of the existing content and what else to add.

Personnel Moves and Additions

Our existing team underwent significant changes in 2007. Executive Director Bob Roberts got married in April 2007. His wife Sarah Roberts now works full-time for Kids 4 Truth as an unpaid volunteer. Rob and Julie Gillen still hold their positions on the Executive Team (as Technical Lead and Financial Coordinator) but have relocated to Knoxville, Tennessee, to accommodate Rob’s full-time employment. Joy McCarnan, Executive Editor, worked part-time remotely while teaching English in France, and then was able to join the staff full-time in October 2007; she is currently based in Illinois. Kids 4 Truth has benefited greatly from the addition (in June 2007) of a part-time Education Specialist, Laura Graham, and another intern, Timothy Ralph. We are also grateful that the number of volunteers has increased throughout 2007.

Online Store Revamped

This year, largely thanks to the technical lead and financial coordinator, Kids 4 Truth launched a new version of the store (http://store.kids4truth.com). The 2007 version has developed some features to make shopping Kids 4 Truth online both easier and more efficient. It also allows staff to highlight items so shoppers can be aware of sales and new items’ availability. Another plus is that a customer can now view his account online and track the status of orders in real time.

EquipU Website: New Version Complete with Clubs Blog and Online Chat

EquipU (http://equipu.kids4truth.com) is the knowledge-base site we operate to provide training and free teaching resources for children’s ministry workers. EquipU was completely renovated this year with a more navigable and user-friendly design. The new version of the EquipU site has added two major features that are serving to increase and facilitate the communication between club workers and Kids 4 Truth staff members:

With the Clubs Blog, the staff can post new information easily and efficiently. The blog’s commenting feature encourages user feedback and discussion. Many readers subscribe to the RSS feed for the blog, so they are alerted each time there is an update.

The new version of EquipU also features an online chat client. A user can click on the icon and “instant message” back and forth in real time with a live operator. This immediate, web-based interaction is convenient all around. A user can reach a staff member almost any time of the work day, whenever he/she has a question. The staff member can send links and interact directly with the user, walking the user through to a solution and maximizing everyone’s time.

Clubs Program Growth Among Local Churches

2007 has been a year of significant increase in curriculum usage, since the number of churches actively using the Kids 4 Truth curriculum has shot from 98 to over 200! Word is spreading about our other resources, as well. The number of EquipU site users went from 336 (in August 2006) to 1,450 as of December 2007. This count represents ministry workers who log into the EquipU resource site to download free materials and to interact with staff and other volunteers.

Audio Options and Other Enhancements to the Devotionals Program

Due to a decrease in volunteer authors, the devotional website (http://devos.kids4truth.com) has been difficult to keep stocked with brand-new devotionals. We are again “recycling” and revising a year’s worth of content under the theme “It’s all about God!” We are also collecting future devotionals and specifying “The Word of God” as the theme for 2009’s content.

The devos site features a daily Scripture excerpt and devotional, a daily “Description of God,” a daily biblical Q&A section, and a weekly “Big Christian Word” section. Our executive editor is systematically working through each of these components for uniformity of content quality and formatting. Although it was not our original intention to “recycle” devotionals from previous years, we are pleased that the resulting content is more refined. Many users have requested the devotionals in book form, so enhancements to the site’s content over time will ensure a high-quality print product when that printing becomes financially feasible.

Our technical lead and graphic designer have come up with a way to generate daily content dynamically into PDF form for weekly or monthly printing and distribution. Subscribers can pay a small fee to circulate the PDFs, and users will benefit from a more print-friendly format. These will be available beginning in early 2008.

Perhaps the most significant development of 2007 in the daily devos program is the addition of audio narration. A college speech professor has recorded the daily devotionals, so the on-screen text of each devo is now accompanied by a “Listen” button. For younger or otherwise-challenged readers, this feature is a great help. The narration is also available via podcasting for those who would like to download devotionals to their computers and MP3 players. Anyone can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes or a link on the devos home page.

Expansion of Dynamation-Related Materials – Because so many had requested the popular “The Watchmaker” dynamation in DVD format, we made this a priority in 2007. Our video expert also arranged for the publishing of “The Watchmaker” on YouTube and GodTube, and he rendered the presentation into a downloadable iPod video version of “The Watchmaker.” PDF copies of “The Watchmaker” dynamation’s script are available for purchase from our online store, as are downloadable coloring pages derived from the presentation’s artwork.

Several of the other dynamations and the Kids 4 Truth promotional video have been put on DVD, and several more are in the queue for DVD production, iPod conversions, and posting on external websites like YouTube. It has been encouraging to see these doors opening for us to reach out to broader, more mainstream audiences through new technology.

SIGNIFICANT PRODUCTS AND RELEASES OF 2007

Kids 4 Truth Songbook – This release presents all twelve original Kids 4 Truth songs written by professionals who volunteered their gifts – the award-winning composer Dan Forrest and published children’s author and editor Eileen Berry. The songbook includes 12 new songs and 24 loved hymns to use as supplemental teaching tools for each of the twelve doctrinal themes emphasized in Kids 4 Truth’s clubs curriculum. Over 60 pages in length, the songbook contains full sheet music for all 36 songs, as well as photocopy-able “kids’ parts” pages for the twelve original songs. The songbooks are useful in the context of home and family, or for larger groups in schools, clubs, and churches. PowerPoint files of the lyrics are available for purchase, as well. We are thrilled with the excellent doctrinal and aesthetic quality of this collection.

Three New Dynamations

The website currently features more than fifteen dynamations, three of which were added in the last year (http://www.kids4truth.com). The “Life of Christ” dynamation was released in December 2006. To accompany the “Life of Christ” dynamation, we have prepared a Gospel tract which we hope to afford to be able to print soon. In early fall of 2007, we added “Creation’s Voice,” which complements both the “Creation” and “The Watchmaker” dynamations. In December 2007, we released “CONTACT!” – a what-if scenario that provokes serious thought about the often-ignored persistence of God’s revelation of Himself throughout human history. Revised TruthTime Teacher Lesson Plans (TTLPs) – Our executive editor is systematically revising the TTLPs for all levels, especially with help from our part-time education specialist who is evaluating the lesson plans for effectiveness and ways to enhance them. The new and improved TTLPs are being re-posted periodically on the EquipU site as revisions are completed.

Parallels Document – This is a booklet of four-column pages which depict the progression of the top 120 questions and answers of the Kids 4 Truth clubs curriculum across the four curriculum levels. In 2007, we were glad to be able to release a preliminary version. There are still some “bugs” being tweaked both in this document and the curriculum it summarizes, but we wanted to get out a version 1, since having a parallels document for cross-level comparisons has been a longstanding request from those evaluating or already using the curriculum.

TruthCards – Another longstanding request from clubs workers and parents, these flash cards cover the top 120 Q&A. They can be purchased and downloaded from our online store.

New Free Review Game – For those who use multimedia technology during teaching time, the new “Treasure Trivia” interactive game (voluntarily created by professional designer Sam Ryan) will be a great review tool. We hope to produce several more of these review games, and to be able to offer them free of charge, as well. “Treasure Trivia” is a self-running file, a free download for anyone registered with EquipU (http://equipu.kids4truth.com).

PHILOSOPHY OF FUNDRAISING AND RECENT ENDEAVORS

At Kids 4 Truth, we have purposed not to raise money by soliciting churches. Our commitment has been to offer local churches the highest-quality product we can at the lowest reasonable cost we can, and to do it without raising support directly from local churches. We believe God has honored this commitment by working in the hearts of individual donors and by introducing us to grant opportunities and alternative fundraising possibilities. While we do strive to make giving more convenient and above reproach for those who choose to help us financially, we acknowledge that it is ultimately God Who always has and always will give us what we need to do His work. In faith we look to Him to continue to be our ultimate Sustainer and Provider.

The Kids 4 Truth Foundation and “Support the Ministry” Pages

We have partnered with the Servant Christian Community Foundation (SCCF) and formed the Kids 4 Truth Foundation. Having our own foundation facilitates creative giving opportunities designed to profit both Kids 4 Truth and those who choose to invest in Kids 4 Truth’s ministry. Through the Kids 4 Truth Foundation, we can put to God-honoring use such things as mutual funds, stocks, old insurance policies, properties, and even out-of-date business inventory that would otherwise go to waste. The SCCF provides both donors and Kids 4 Truth with expert guidance from beginning to end for any non-cash donation.

A “Support the Ministry” web page explains to donors how they can support Kids 4 Truth efficiently and effectively. The home page itself (http://www.kids4truth.com/donate) contains useful foundation information and informative links, while the corresponding “Support the Ministry” Blog (http://equipu.kids4truth.com/blogs/supporttheministry) showcases creative giving ideas, delineates current needs, and shares encouraging news about how God has been meeting those needs.

GoodSearch and GoodShopping – GoodSearch is charity-friendly search engine that partners with generous commercial sponsors to generate funds for select organizations and causes. For every worldwide web search launched on behalf of a particular charity, GoodSearch contributes (out of the pockets of sponsoring companies) a penny per search to that specified charity. Many friends of Kids 4 Truth have set their homepages to GoodSearch and/or made a habit of looking up things on GoodSearch instead of other search engines. The URL to bookmark would be http://www.goodsearch.com/?charityid=824752. For every search made with the charity identification 824752, Kids 4 Truth legally and legitimately receives a penny. This may not sound like much, but those pennies have been adding up.

In fall 2007, GoodSearch introduced “GoodShopping” – a sort of online mall gateway. People who shop online can “enter” their favorite stores through GoodSearch’s GoodShopping page and thereby generate a certain percentage of each transaction to the shopper’s charity of choice. The partnering sponsors (mainline companies like eBay, Amazon, Best Buy, Target, etc.) determine how much per sale they are willing to contribute from their sales. Kids 4 Truth saw our supporters’ seemingly-incremental efforts pay off: GoodSearch has sent $500.00 in proceeds from 2007 so far.

FUTURE PLANS TO ENHANCE THE MINISTRY

Our motto for 2008 is “Going from good to great.” The Kids 4 Truth team has purposed to strengthen the curriculum content, the clubs program, the website, and the ministry in general. We want to continue to hone our existing materials and customer support system so as to offer the best we can possibly offer. We have a huge vision for broadening our overall ministry, but we also want to fine-tune what we already have and be wise stewards so that future goals can be realized, as well. In order to do this we have set goals and projects for this next year.

Main Website Redesign – As has already been mentioned, http://www.kids4truth.com will undergo a makeover: New look, kid-friendly links, more interactivity, and more substantial content.

WebNumbers Pages – In 2008, we plan to release the WebNumbers site, which will function as an optional companion site for the curriculum books. The site will contain 360 WebNumbers pages corresponding to the “code” printed in each of 120 units in the curriculum for levels 2-4. Each page will contain supplemental material for more eager kids. Things like quizzes, historical information, further topical details, and/or study helps to accompany the top 120 Q&A.

Continuing Updates to Upper-Level Lesson Plans and EquipU Offerings

Also as already mentioned, we continue to replace the currently-posted TTLPS for levels 2-4

with revised and enhanced lesson plans. New PowerPoint-based review time games are coming soon for group use, free of charge. We are constantly developing and adding new downloadable materials to help clubs workers assess needs, organize available resources, and execute ideas to improve the way their clubs operate. New worksheets, craft ideas, and activity suggestions are lining up over time for each of the doctrinal themes for levels 2-4.

StartUp Resources and a New Tutorial Training and Certification Program

2008 should bring the release of our Directors StartUp and Resource Manual, which will not only help directors launch their clubs, but will also give them valuable organizational tips. We are also finalizing a tutorial-based, multi-level certification program for training workers.

Discoverers Curriculum and Lesson Plan Modifications

In response to parental evaluation and expert feedback, we hope to revamp the Discoverers curriculum and to continue with level 1 TTLPs’ revision and enhancement. New coloring pages, worksheets, and craft and activity suggestions are also slated for the Discoverers level.

Additional Products for the Online Store – We praise the Lord that a generous church recently donated a sizable gift toward the printing costs for the first run of our Gospel tract/fold-out poster. We have reason to hope that this Gospel tract titled “Let’s Talk About God” might be printed and available sometime in 2008. Also, as they draw near to completion, we plan to make the revised TTLPs available in CD and book format. Interested users will be able to purchase unique features such as subscription services for custom calendars, daily devotional PDFs, web-based record-keeping, and much more.

I am deeply interested in evangelizing children. By “evangelize,” I mean to proclaim the Gospel with intent to convert the hearer to Christianity. This is the business of an evangelist but evangelizing children should be the business of every Christian.

So why am I so interested in evangelizing children? “Why” questions are the most important questions of life! It has been said that the man that can answer the question “what” will always have a job. But the man that can answer the question “why” will always be his boss. On one hand, some may consider an article that answers the question “why evangelize children?” a moot point. God said to, that’s why! Case closed. Paper finished! Yes, God commands that we evangelize children, and that is more than enough of a reason to do so. But God loves obedience that comes out of a desire to understand and know the heart and mind of God rather than simple rote duty. I have found it worth my time to meditate upon several reasons that are born out of the ultimate reason of simple obedience. These reasons serve to put a healthy weight of responsibility upon me while simultaneously empowering me to evangelize children for God’s glory.

So let’s consider the answer(s) to the question: Why should you and I evangelize children?

ONE: Because Children Have A Fallen Nature and Desperately Need Christ

I have the joy and privilege of speaking at summer camps from time to time. Most frequently I minister to juniors during these occasions. One summer week, I encountered a 5^th grade girl who adamantly insisted that she had “problems” and that the camp staff should provide her with special treatment. What did she have? She had a “disease” called Oppositional Defiant Disorder…or ODD for short. I had to suppress a chuckle when I found out we were dealing with an odd child. I let it slide at the time, I think.

But as I began to research this out further, I was surprised to see how “doctors” defined this “syndrome” known as ODD.

Here, from the Mayo Clinic’s website is a list of ODD symptoms.

· Negativity

· Defiance

· Disobedience

· Hostility directed toward authority figures

· Frequent temper tantrums

· Argumentativeness with adults

· Refusal to comply with adult requests or rules

· Deliberate annoyance of other people

· Blaming others for mistakes or misbehavior

· Acting touchy and easily annoyed

· Anger and resentment

· Spiteful or vindictive behavior

· Aggressiveness toward peers

· Difficulty maintaining friendships

· Academic problems

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/oppositional-defiant-disorder/DS00630

Isn’t it odd how the world responds when they are confronted with their own depravity? They try to relegate their anti-God character to medical disorders or circumstances. Our God has something different to say about such behavior:

(Eph 2:1-3 KJV) And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

This world system is dominated by an attitude of disobedience against God. And without Christ, everyone, including boys and girls, are held in bondage to that attitude.

Children need to understand is their lost and fallen nature apart from Christ. For kids that grow up in a Christian home and an environment that is largely a Christian subculture, it is easy for to compare themselves against more outwardly sinful children and consider themselves “okay.” I remember thinking this way too. I evaluated my standing before God based on what the bad kids were doing and what I wasn’t doing! But I had the exact same nature as those “bad” kids: I was dead in sin, held captive by the power of sin, and a child of wrath by nature. I desperately needed Christ. When I speak to boys and girls, I want to do my best to remove any false object of faith. I don’t want to send kids away with the idea that somehow they have within themselves the competency to measure up to God’s holiness. We must not give pride any soil in which to grow! Tell children firmly yet lovingly how desperate their condition is apart from Christ.

Boys and girls are often told how good they are. I remember Steve Pettit asking the boys and girls a question one summer when I was a counselor at Northland Christian Camp. He asked the crowd: “How many of you boys and girls have ever been told: [impersonating a woman’s voice…possibly an aunt] ‘You’re a GOOD little girl. You’re a GOOD little boy?’” Boys and girls would raise their hands. Then Steve told them: “Guess what? They lied!” As I surveyed the sea of little faces, I could tell that they needed the wake up call.

(Rom 3:10-11 KJV) As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

(By the way, thank you for that brother Steve. I’ve used that many times.)

TWO: Because Children Are the Church of the Future

Charles Spurgeon said: “It is the duty of the church of God to maintain, in fullest vigor, every agency intended for the religious education of the young; to them we must look for the church of the future, and as we sow towards them so shall we reap.”

It is important that the church of the future be filled with true converts! We must never assume simply because a child has been raised in a Christian home that he has been converted to Christ. Many children look to a recited prayer when they were very young as their moment of salvation. I know this firsthand, because I looked to a fuzzy memory and some repeated words as the source of my salvation for many years. The object of my faith was in a memory, not in Christ.

The key problem in many of these instances is that there is no true understanding of sin because turning from sin and to Christ by grace through faith is not presented as the greatest need! In my case, the teacher presented my greatest need as going to heaven rather than hell when I died. What was skipped, however, was the reason WHY I would not go to heaven…namely, SIN. I had offended my Creator. I was guilty. What does God call sinners to do? Repent and believe. God commands us to be converted.

(Acts 3:19 KJV) Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

“Conversion,” in a word, means turning. Conversion is turning from sin and turning to Christ. One cannot turn to something without turning away from something else. This is not a tough concept for children to grasp…stop loving my sin and start loving God! This is God’s requirement for salvation. Not repeating words to a prayer. Not being raised in a Christian home. Not putting a date in a Bible. Conversion. Do you want to be saved? Then be converted! Repent and believe!

It is entirely my responsibility to repent and believe. It is entirely God’s work. I don’t understand these two truths fully, but these truths liberate me to passionately persuade boys and girls to give their lives to Jesus Christ while I trust in God to be at work in their hearts and minds.

A true convert is changed by God and continues to be changed by God. A true convert loves God and hates sin. The Bible exhorts us to examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith. Jesus Christ rebuked his disciples when they were arguing about who would be greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven by bringing a small child into their midst and using him as object lesson. Instead of answering their question at first, Christ raised and answered another question: “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8:13).” Christ was helping these sinful men see that instead of being concerned about being great in the Kingdom of Heaven, they should be far more concerned about simply getting into the Kingdom of Heaven because they were so sinful (just like the rest of us).

Spurgeon continues his thought about children: "So far as they can be taught by word of mouth, or learned by the hearing of the ear, we are to communicate the faith and fear of God, inculcating upon the rising generation the principles and practices of piety…We should be winning and attractive to the youngsters, bidding them "come," and not repelling them with harsh terms. We must get them away, apart from toys and sports, and try to occupy their minds with better pursuits; for we cannot well teach them while their minds are full of other things. We must drive at the main point always, and keep the fear of the Lord ever uppermost in our teachings.”

Amen, Pastor Spurgeon. Amen. The main point must be God. If children miss God, they miss everything.

THREE: Because Christ and Faith in Him Is the Foundation for Any/All True Knowledge

In our post-modern culture, it has become somewhat noble to let children “decide for themselves” what they believe concerning religion. The idea is that we should be entirely neutral when we teach boys and girls anything. Schools endeavor to teach boys and girls reason and logic. But the very foundation of all reason and logic is faith in the God of the Bible. Consider these passages of Scripture:

· (Prov 1:7 KJV) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

· (Col 2:3 KJV) In whom [Christ] are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

If a child does not have the foundation of Christ, then a child has no real knowledge and will not be able to develop in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. They will develop into adults who are incapable of making truly wise or God honoring decisions. In fact, if they do stumble into making a wise choice, they are by necessity borrowing from the Christian’s worldview.

I remember hearing about a talk show in which a woman expressed that she did not feel she had any right to impose her religious beliefs upon her children (or any children, for that matter). Basically, what she was telling her children in no uncertain terms is that mommy had absolutely nothing to offer when it came to the most important area of their lives. She had no spiritual heritage to give because she did not know God.

But as Christians that know and love God, we have a precious spiritual heritage to pass on to both our own children and the children of others.

But children today are ignorant of God.

Ken Ham has described our culture lately as being an “Acts 17 Culture” versus an “Acts 2 Culture.” He explained his citing of Acts 17 was a reference to Paul’s appearance on Mars Hill in which he teaches a group of completely uninformed Greeks. Paul starts with the most basic truths about God. In Acts 2, however, Peter delivers a sermon to people that had a solid knowledge-base of the Scriptures, and knew the “basics.” Fifty years ago our culture was more of an “Acts 2” culture. People read the Bible and held it in high regard. Today, we are definitely an “Acts 17” culture. People, especially children, are ignorant of even the most basic truths about God.

As teachers of children, we must “be all about God” in hopes that our audience will hope in God.

(Psa 78:1-8 KJV) Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.

Hoping in God changes everything! I want to see a generation that knows their God through the truth.

FOUR: Because Evangelizing Children Gives Me Another Valid Reason To Beg God For Grace To Keep Me From Falling.

Why should God keep you alive? More importantly, why should God grant you the grace to keep you from falling? The Psalmist knew one valid reason for which to beg God for more grace: so that he might declare God to the next generation.

Psalm 71:17-19 says, “O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works. Now also when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have showed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come. Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high, who hast done great things: O God, who is like unto thee!”

When the Psalmist begs God not to forsake Him, he could mean something like this: “God, please do not loosen Your hold on my life or permit me to go astray.” This reminds me of the great hymn that says, “Prone to wander Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love!”

In the day and age which we live, we need grace more than anything. We need grace to keep us from ourselves. Praying like the Psalmist prayed reminds us that we do not live our lives in isolation. We spend our days here with many eyes upon us. May we be found faithful so that we might show Your glory and power to the next generation.

FIVE: Because I Want To Be Zealous About Those Things Which God Is Zealous

When I was in the seventh grade I had a great teacher. His name was Jack Shea, and he taught in a public school in Crystal Lake, IL. I’ll never forget the first day we sat down in his class. He opened a big black book and began reading, of all things, poetry. As junior high students, we did not know what to make of this dude. We weren’t interested in poetry, we were interested in pizza and guns and video games, but definitely not poetry.

But as the semester wore on, an amazing transformation began to occur in us: we started loving poetry. His passion for poetry was contagious. In fact, I remember recesses in which my buddies and I talked about the poems we were writing. That is abnormal for junior high boys! What made the difference? A passionate teacher. He was in love with the subject he taught and we starting loving the subject too.

Are you and I in love with the Subject that we teach and preach about?

I want to be passionate about the things that matter most. I want to be passionate about that which God is passionate.

Consider God’s passion:

(Deu 6:4-9 KJV) Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

It is impossible to avoid God’s passion for His Truth and that children would learn this truth about Him! But is a passage like this applicable for New Testament believers like us?

Absolutely.

God’s character is unchanging. If he was passionate then about His truth, He is most certainly passionate about it now. Also consider this: what was the chief difference between us today and the children of Israel then? We have more light! They had the Law. We have the One Who has perfectly fulfilled the Law. We have Christ. God has revealed Himself to us in the Person of Jesus Christ. And knowing God in Christ is EVERYTHING.

(John 17:3 KJV) And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

By God’s grace, I’m a member of His Kingdom because I know Christ through faith.

(2 Pet 1:3 KJV) According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

By God’s grace, everything I need for life, and godliness, and growth have come and are continuing to come because I know Christ. Praise the Lord! Logic, reason, and human effort were not the tools by which this came…it was the GRACE of God.

May boys and girls be attracted to the Lord Jesus Christ in us. May we never be found to be cold, dull, lifeless, and boring. May we be passionate about that which God is passionate. Let us evangelize children for the glory of God. May we present God in all His glory in Christ, may we amplify the sinfulness and lost condition of man, and may our goal for children be true biblical conversion so that the church of tomorrow is filled with people that love and follow God.

Our friends at Answers In Genesis said some very nice things about Kids 4 Truth in their most recent edition of Answers Magazine (Jan-Mar issue). We are thrilled about this write-up and want to express our gratitude to Ken Ham and everyone at Answers In Genesis for helping Bible-believing Christians discover our humble ministry (or at least give it a second look)! Seriously, it is a big deal to us when a ministry so well-known for upholding the Scriptures recognizes our efforts to help Christians take a bold stand for the truth while (and by!) passing it on to the next generation.

A few months  ago I had the privilege to visit the Creation Museum before it was open to the public. I have not yet been able to go back yet but I am looking forward to when I can do so. I *think* they're using at least one of our Dynamations downstairs in the children's section of the museum.

Anyway, I had a great time meeting some of the leadership at Answers. They are true servants. Especially thrilling to me was when I asked Ken about his apologetic approach and he was quick to point out how important it is for one to have a solid foundation in presuppositional apologetics to powerfully defend the Scriptures. It got better. Next he recommended that I read Greg Bahnsen to better understand what he was talking about. I was so pleased I couldn't say much! I don't think Ken knew about my "Greg Bahnsen Fan Club" Facebook group! Ken gave me a signed copy of "Always Ready" by Greg Bahnsen before the day was over. I treasure that book! My mother-in-law is currently borrowing it...I better not see it on Ebay, mom!!

What a great day it was to visit the Creation Museum! Below find a little video from that day. I can't wait to go back.

Is the Truth really out there?

http://www.kids4truth.com/contact

Does intelligent life exist in outer space? Millions of dollars have been spent searching the stars and listening for evidence to confirm whether or not we are alone in the universe. Even a five-second message from an alien mind might help us better understand our place in the world and perhaps lend some significance to our human existence.

But could it be that contact has already been made with us in a powerful and visible way? Has the ultimate Intelligence sent us a Message that simply cannot be missed? At Kids 4 Truth, we believe that "contact" has been made – not by an alien race, but by the Creator of all life: God Himself.

We are pleased to announce our newest dynamation: “Contact!” This presentation was designed to purport two truths:  There is one true God, and this one true God has spoken! What is His message? Come watch "Contact!" and find out –  http://www.kids4truth.com/contact.

As Christians, we often fail to realize the agenda and/or philosophy behind that with which we are entertained. The new movie "The Golden Compass" is receiving much press, both praise and condemnation. It may in fact be a much tamer version of the book on which it is based, but that's not what concerns me. I want to know the worldview this media will ultimately teach children.

Consider the underlying philosophy ("mind") that permeates the book and movie. Here, in the author's own words from his own website, we get a brief yet very clear glimpse into his worldview.

Q: What stance do the books take?
A: Underlying the trilogy there is a myth of creation and rebellion, of development and strife, and so on. I don't make this myth explicit anywhere, but it was important for me to have it clear in my mind. It depicts a struggle: the old forces of control and ritual and authority, the forces which have been embodied throughout human history in such phenomena as the Inquisition, the witch-trials, the burning of heretics, and which are still strong today in the regions of the world where religious zealots of any faith have power, are on one side; and the forces that fight against them have as their guiding principle an idea which is summed up in the words The Republic of Heaven. It's the Kingdom against the Republic.

And everything follows from that. So, for instance, the book depicts the Temptation and Fall not as the source of all woe and misery, as in traditional Christian teaching, but as the beginning of true human freedom something to be celebrated, not lamented. And the Tempter is not an evil being like Satan, prompted by malice and envy, but a figure who might stand for Wisdom.

The myth has allowed me to link together many aspects of the story in a sort of invisible way which might not be apparent to the reader, but which I have found helpful. For example, it explains where dæmons come from, and what happens when we die, and why there are many universes. And if certain Christian critics are confused by this, and imagine I'm denying the difference between good and evil, then all I can say is that I shall pray for them.

I'm not "confused by this," Mr. Pullman. God's Word, my ultimate authority, describes you,  your work, and your worldview quite clearly. You are self-deceived and obviously working overtime to push back the general revelation of God that you can observe in the created world around you and in the gracious pangs of your own conscience.

And your "story" is not new, either. You may have repackaged it more beautifully and articulately but it is the same old lie that the ancient gnostics swallowed hook, line, and sinker. Christians and Christian children should see this and understand this immediately, but I fear we're far more concerned about being entertained than we are about engaging our minds to think God's thoughts after Him.

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of attending a missionary conference where I met Doug Laney and his family. For the last 10 years, Doug has been a missionary to Papua New Guinea. During the conference Doug showed us a 15 minute video that catalogs his work in PNG. It is a blessing. It's so good to see the power of God and His Gospel. Sometimes its tough to keep the main thing the main thing. This video will help refocus. Guaranteed.

I want to thank the Laney family for granting me permission to post this video publicly. I hope it will be a blessing to you.

WARNING: Do not let your children watch this if you are interested in them pursuing the American "Dream."

George Bernard Shaw said: "The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one."

Hmmmmm. The only difference is that we're fully and consciously aware of our happiness. Oh, and our "happiness" doesn't leave in the morning, either.

Proverbs 19:23
The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.

I 'm reading Iain Murray's biography on Jonathan Edwards and I discovered that Edwards had a reading list like so many of us have, too. I'll wager though that he got through more of his list than we'll ever get through on ours!  

Iain notes about Edwards' reading habits: "There are 452 entries in all on religious books and these have been divided as follows:

• Church History - 62
• Bible - 33
• Works - 17
• Sermons - 37
• Theology - 279"