We hear it. We see it. We feel it in our bones. The heart-wrenching, unexplanable, horrible, awful things unfolding in our world have taken us over. We see hopelessness more than hope. We celebrate lost lives more than victories. We see a crumbling world where God seems so very far away. But is He? I thought I'd turn the tides, so to speak, and talk about the good stuff. Maybe this will increase our hope a smidge and help us to not fret; God is still so very near.
Last week nine beautiful souls proclaimed their allegiance with Christ. With a gun pointed at them knowing their fate if they give that answer, the still said yes to God. I often wonder what I would do if put in this situation. Would I say yes? I like to think that it takes supernatural power to say you believe when you know your fate is death. As horrifying as the Oregon tragedy was, these heroes spoke boldly for their faith and Jesus' name was proclaimed into millions of households when the news broke the story. These nine martyrs spoke fateful deadly words that saved lives. The shooter thought he was going to silence God by gunning down His followers yet he did quite the opposite. This tragedy united people of all denominations to join together in prayer and untiy for the soul purpose of showing others the love of Christ. He was there that day: Jesus was. He gave each of those beautiful individuals the courage to speak and not be silenced. What a miracle!
The movie, War Room took over the box office over the summer taking the number one spot. This powerful movie about having a life strategy through prayer quickly went from a sleeper to a hit proving, once again, that the audience desires more than sex and violence. The movie industry often refers to last year as the "year of the Bible" with the box office hits, God's Not Dead, Son of God, and Heaven is Real. There are numerous Christian-based films heading to the big screen this fall including, 90 Minutes in Heaven and Captive based on a true story. There is a hunger for good-quality moral movies and Hollywood is recognizing this. As much as the media seems to be anti-Christian, it seems the tide is changing.
Christian authors are gaining grounds. Multiple faith-based books are hitting number one on the New York Times Best Sellers list and these authors are getting noticed. jen Hatmakers', For the Love hit number one and gave her a platform to speak bodly and continuously on mainstream networks. Other authors have received air-time on morning news shows speaking the Truth and about the love of Christ. Authors and speakers are couragiously taking a stand for their faith and allowing those who wouldn't normally take the time to go to church see who Jesus is in a whole other arena.
Shows like Fixer Upper are gaining ground because of their style and, more importantly, because of their representation of a good solid marriage relationship and family unit. The Gaines' speak outwardly about their faith and how it guides them in their business and personal life. Their show rapidly caught on and exploded. People desire to see two people working side-by-side in marriage, family, and business instead of other train-wreck reality shows and this is evident in their HGTV hit. People drive across the country to visit their little shop on Bosque and to maybe get a glimpse of the power couple. I love that they don't abandoned their faith for fame. The two are one.
Christine Caine and her A21 Campaign are rescuing countless sex-trafficking victims throughout the world teaching these ladies of their worth in Jesus Christ. They have established trusting relationships with international governments that can only be explained by God. Countless people are being exposed to the Gospel through her dream that became a reality. She currently raised funds to convert old shipping containers into water stations for all the refugees that are flooding into Greece and the surrounding areas. Her campaign has volunteers stationed at the water stations showing the love of Christ to countless people who cross the border hopeless. Christ is evident there.
I can go on and on about the evidence that God still exists in our world. Hillsong Church exploded reaching lives across the globe including smack-dab in the middle of Times Square. God is going into places we never thought possible. He is in our schools even though we feel like He got kicked out. He is on the streets, in the media, in our neighborhoods. This is the good stuff, y'all. To quote the saying I have posted on our fridge from our 9-year old, "He is here, He is near."
Love & Blessings,
Meg
Last week nine beautiful souls proclaimed their allegiance with Christ. With a gun pointed at them knowing their fate if they give that answer, the still said yes to God. I often wonder what I would do if put in this situation. Would I say yes? I like to think that it takes supernatural power to say you believe when you know your fate is death. As horrifying as the Oregon tragedy was, these heroes spoke boldly for their faith and Jesus' name was proclaimed into millions of households when the news broke the story. These nine martyrs spoke fateful deadly words that saved lives. The shooter thought he was going to silence God by gunning down His followers yet he did quite the opposite. This tragedy united people of all denominations to join together in prayer and untiy for the soul purpose of showing others the love of Christ. He was there that day: Jesus was. He gave each of those beautiful individuals the courage to speak and not be silenced. What a miracle!
The movie, War Room took over the box office over the summer taking the number one spot. This powerful movie about having a life strategy through prayer quickly went from a sleeper to a hit proving, once again, that the audience desires more than sex and violence. The movie industry often refers to last year as the "year of the Bible" with the box office hits, God's Not Dead, Son of God, and Heaven is Real. There are numerous Christian-based films heading to the big screen this fall including, 90 Minutes in Heaven and Captive based on a true story. There is a hunger for good-quality moral movies and Hollywood is recognizing this. As much as the media seems to be anti-Christian, it seems the tide is changing.
Christian authors are gaining grounds. Multiple faith-based books are hitting number one on the New York Times Best Sellers list and these authors are getting noticed. jen Hatmakers', For the Love hit number one and gave her a platform to speak bodly and continuously on mainstream networks. Other authors have received air-time on morning news shows speaking the Truth and about the love of Christ. Authors and speakers are couragiously taking a stand for their faith and allowing those who wouldn't normally take the time to go to church see who Jesus is in a whole other arena.
Shows like Fixer Upper are gaining ground because of their style and, more importantly, because of their representation of a good solid marriage relationship and family unit. The Gaines' speak outwardly about their faith and how it guides them in their business and personal life. Their show rapidly caught on and exploded. People desire to see two people working side-by-side in marriage, family, and business instead of other train-wreck reality shows and this is evident in their HGTV hit. People drive across the country to visit their little shop on Bosque and to maybe get a glimpse of the power couple. I love that they don't abandoned their faith for fame. The two are one.
Christine Caine and her A21 Campaign are rescuing countless sex-trafficking victims throughout the world teaching these ladies of their worth in Jesus Christ. They have established trusting relationships with international governments that can only be explained by God. Countless people are being exposed to the Gospel through her dream that became a reality. She currently raised funds to convert old shipping containers into water stations for all the refugees that are flooding into Greece and the surrounding areas. Her campaign has volunteers stationed at the water stations showing the love of Christ to countless people who cross the border hopeless. Christ is evident there.
I can go on and on about the evidence that God still exists in our world. Hillsong Church exploded reaching lives across the globe including smack-dab in the middle of Times Square. God is going into places we never thought possible. He is in our schools even though we feel like He got kicked out. He is on the streets, in the media, in our neighborhoods. This is the good stuff, y'all. To quote the saying I have posted on our fridge from our 9-year old, "He is here, He is near."
Love & Blessings,
Meg
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