Monday, 05 April 2010
The Meaning of Easter in 2010 
The Meaning of Easter in 2010
By Eddie Fleming
What does Easter mean? What could it mean? For the atheist it means fantasy. For the post-modernist, it means whatever you want it to mean. For the believer it means reality. It means all that the Old and New Testaments contain are true. It means Jesus is who He says He is and can do all He promises to do. It means Hell is a reality that can be avoided and Heaven is a blessing that can be obtained.
We live in a day of individualism, criticism, sarcasm, racism, sexism, and nihilism. We search for love and happiness in all the wrong places and worry about everything for all the wrong reasons. Almost every family has experienced the hardships and sorrows of life. We’ve been ravaged by cancer, devastated by divorce, and enslaved by drugs, alcohol, and pornography. Can Easter help us?
All that has happened has done so in the shadow of the cross and in the light of the resurrection. Have we failed to realize that in the death of Christ we have proof of God’s love for us and in His resurrection we have proof of God’s power that’s available to us? It’s a power that raised Christ from the grave and delivered Peter from his cowardice. It’s a power that can make us more than conquerors when faced with cancer on the inside or bad circumstances on the outside. It can deliver a bad marriage from certain divorce and transform bad circumstances into blessings. It can break the shackles created by drugs and alcohol and open prison doors made of bitterness and unforgiveness. The hope of mankind doesn’t reside in a quality education, a certain political party in power, or a new world order, but rather in the power that raised Christ from the grave.
Easter means more than we realize or can imagine. It means more than a high attendance Sunday, or an excuse for a new suit or new dress. It means more than freedom from the fear of death and the hope of eternal life. It means the death of the Son satisfied the wrath of the Father. It means our sins can become as white as snow and our future can be as bright as the sun. It means we don’t have to live or think the same old way. We can be more than what we are and do more than what we do. We can really be a light for the world and salt to the earth.
The religions of the world have their holy books and their holy days, but only Christianity has its Easter. Other religions have their spiritual leaders, but Christianity has its resurrected Savior. Other religions can improve us, but only Christianity can transform us. Knowing what Easter means is one thing, but knowing what it could mean to each of us is something else.
What could Easter mean to you in 2010? It could mean more than it did in all the years prior. For the unbeliever it could mean a new heart and a new hope. It could mean a new way of seeing things and a new power to accomplish things. For the deceived, it could mean moving from the land of make-believe into the land of reality. It’s possible to be sincere about one’s faith, yet be sincerely wrong. I know how easy it is to go to an altar, in my case as a teenager, for prayer and confession because someone asked you to, not because the Holy Spirit convinced you to. I know it’s possible to receive assurances of your salvation from a minister, but not receive a Savior or the power to transform you. I know what it’s like to reject the convicting power of the Holy Spirit by listening to the convincing lies of Satan. I know what it is to focus on your prayer of confession for your assurance of salvation, while ignoring the Bible’s focus on transformation as proof of your salvation.
After I had been truly saved, God pointed out John 6:65 to me. “Then he said, ‘That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me’” (John 6:65 NLT). The Holy Spirit must convince us that we are lost and that Christ’s death and resurrection is our only hope and solution. Easter in 2010 can mean a new life for us and a new hope for those around us. For new believers and old believers, it can mean living in the power of Easter the same way the disciples did shortly after the first Easter. The possibility is real, the opportunity is now, but the choice is up to each of us.
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Posted on 04/05/2010 7:26 AM by Eddie Fleming
Thursday, 18 March 2010
Beyond The Revolution - Youth Alive Series
“Beyond The Revolution”
By Dwayne Foster
My church is having a regional Youth Rally March 26th. We are calling it Beyond the Revolution. Revolution is about change, motion, the change that is constant in our lives. We want to change for the good and help make more people aware of God and how we can communicate God to even more people.
The movie that was released this past winter called “To Save a Life” is now one of my top ten favorite movies. It was true to life and inspiring, very inspiring. It helped me to look out for those who are neglected and hurting even more, and those who are simply lost in the maze of life.
God can take any person in any condition and make a new person out of them, or a better person. God is not limited! We often limit ourselves or others. Maybe we allow others to limit us. Sadly we often limit God!
As Christians we should look for the supernatural work of God to change a person from being oppressed to being a great beacon for Christ. It hurts me badly when we Christians will label someone as broken and not able to be used because they do not fit the stereotype or prejudged notions that we may have. I think that we are the messengers, He (God) is the message and he can use who he wants if we like it, or even if we don’t like it.
As the Associate Pastor over youth I get the opportunity to talk with my youth, their friends, and kids from various walks. I hear the stories of anger, abuse, neglect, pregnancy, love, and so on. I see the kids that are mentally challenged, physically challenged, those who have more and those who have less, and yes even those who are in harm’s way.
I see kids who are running from God and who seek to be loaners. Blaming people for their lives and the mess they are in. They often see themselves as trapped in a big dark hole with no way out. Sometimes for them it seems to be true and often we the church offer little help for them to escape.
I find it hard to reach the lost if I stay in my protected circle. I have to (go out); I have to (reach out). Please join me in praying for our teens this month and beyond. We have so many kids in homes that are damaging them, they are afraid to tell anyone what their lives are like, in fear it may get worse. We must be the light!
The number one thing that we have been called to do is to spread the word of God, tell others about Jesus. Most of our churches spend more on toilet paper a year than they do on (true) local community outreach/evangelism and then we wonder why we are not reaching people. Why are they not coming to (our) church? Why do we have so many empty seats?
Lastly, the un-churched kids and adults see us (the church) as foreign. What do I mean? We are not like anything else they have ever seen. We sing songs and use music that the un-churched generation is not familiar with, like our favorite hymns from the 1940’s.
We expect them to be excited about who God is when often we ourselves are not passionate about our God. We use terminology that is very confusing and foreign to them, and then offer little breakdown or explanation of words we use, words that we take for granted. We want them to adjust to us, not us to them. Who is trying to reach who?
Then we seldom make it easy for the visitor in seating. We sit in the back and make the guest have to set up front or in the middle, thus almost assuring that many will never return more than a couple of times. We make it uncomfortable for them. Are we telling them our comfort is more important than their salvation?
Take a look at the churches that are reaching the lost and look at the ones that are not. I am talking about true conversions, not just saying the words and going through the motions.
We should all look at our own lives, our own church body and see if we are doing our will, or God’s will. And is His will ours? Go Beyond the Revolution! Make a Difference!
Dwayne Foster is the Marketing Director for Stinson Press, Inc. in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. He has been with the company since 2004. He is also the (Associate Pastor – Youth) at South Poplar Bluff General Baptist Church. He is married to Belinda (Wheeler) Foster. Dwayne has a 19 year old daughter attending college in Arkansas. Dwayne & Belinda both grew up in Northeast Arkansas. Foster is a former pro-wrestler and currently sits on several advisory boards across the U.S.
Posted on 03/18/2010 8:48 AM by Dwayne Foster
Monday, 01 February 2010
A Happy Marriage: Is That Possible?
A Happy Marriage: Is That Possible?
by, Keith Luke
Years ago a family friend groaned, “I wish marriage licenses expired like drivers licenses.” That may express the sentiment of many couples today who wonder if it’s possible to have a happy marriage. But the Scriptures give us real hope for happy marriages.
(Proverbs 18:22NIV) “He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD.” The Scriptures teach us that for a marriage to be happy, God must be included from beginning to end. God’s work in the beginning is to bring two believers together. In the book of Ruth, Boaz and Ruth were from different backgrounds but loved the Lord very much. For two Christians to get married, they must believe that God is bringing them together for life.
(2 Corinthians 6:14NIV) “14Do not be yoked together with unbelievers…” Paul was saying that believers must not marry unbelievers. The greatest heartache for a believer is to have an unbelieving spouse. The first and most important criteria for a Christian to consider in selecting a marriage partner is the other person’s relationship with God. If that person is not a Christian, walk away. Save yourself a lifetime of heartache.
This principle also includes the marriage of two believers on opposite ends of the faith spectrum. Some Christians are saved, excited about what God is doing, and passionate about serving God, while others are just saved, satisfied, and don’t want to be bothered by God. You can’t keep some down, while it would take a keg of dynamite to raise others up.
God has a plan for you. A happy marriage will take place when you have a mate that you are confident God has brought into your life. If God does not lead you to your mate, you are out of His perfect will.
As Ruth and Boaz sought the guidance of God, He brought them together and blessed them. God blessed Ruth with a much needed husband and Boaz with a companion for life. (Proverbs 31:10NIV) A “wife of noble character…is worth far more than rubies.”
Not only were they blessed with a believing spouse, Ruth and Boaz were rewarded with a son (Ruth 4:13). “Children are a gift from the Lord…a reward from him” (Psalm 127:3NLT).
A marriage is happy when children are considered a gift from God. No one knows how precious they are more than those who are unable to have them. To those couples I say, God has a plan for you. It isn’t the same plan He has for someone else. Happy is the couple who is content with how God chooses to bless them. Trust Him!
And happiness should continue as we grow older. Many couples spend their entire married lives living for the children. And when the nest becomes empty, they find themselves living with a stranger. But it doesn’t have to be that way. One of the keys to happiness in the latter years of marriage is to spend the earlier years putting the marriage first—keeping the home fires burning.
HUSBANDS, acquiring a mate doesn’t mean you can quit romancing the one you love. You must continue trying to win her heart.
WIVES, he’s YOUR man. Make sure he knows it, because there WILL be women out there who will let him know he’s special.
The empty nest doesn’t have to be a syndrome; it can be an exciting adventure. And it will be, if you make each moment count. Don’t say, “When the kids get gone we’ll do such-and-such.” Chances are you’ll never get around to it.
Ruth expressed her conviction like this: “Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God” (1:16NIV). Learn to walk with God individually and together while you are young, and it will make your life happier when you are old.
Posted on 02/01/2010 3:13 PM by Keith Luke
Thursday, 28 January 2010
Grooming The Next Generation
Grooming The Next Generation
By, Dale Bates
Grooming the next generation has never been more urgent than today. As I mentioned in a previous blog 88% of the children in evangelical homes leave church at the age of 18. As they are more exposed to the world the more they are enticed to stray. It is alarming and the question is why?
The Bible says, “Train up a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it” Proverbs 22:6. If that be true and I believe it is then the only reason for a child to turn is he or she has not been taught. If they are living in a Christian home and attending a Bible believing church, then why were they not taught? You might think it is a simplistic answer, but I believe the answer is parents have dropped the ball. Maybe not intentionally, but the ball has been dropped. Possibly, they were relying on the Sunday school or youth ministry at church to do their job.
The statistics, however, prove they have failed. So we know what the problem is what do we do to fix it? Several of the Mega churches are trying to come up with a fix and some have concluded that the answer is for the church to assist the parents in training their children at home.
I know this is quite a shift in thought and practice, but it must take place if we are going to make a difference. The reason the family was instituted by God was to have children and train them to love and worship Him.
In Deuteronomy chapter 6 the children of God were instructed to teach the word of God to the children when they get up in the morning, as they sit at home, when they are walking down the street, and when they lay down at night. This was a family thing.
Somewhere along the way we have gotten away from that responsibility. Here at Stinson Press we want to help you get back to the basics. Attached is a video that helps to drive home the point. Take a look.
Video includes: George Barna, John Trent, Fred Stoker, Ron Hunter and others talking about taking your walk to a higher experience.
Posted on 01/28/2010 8:35 AM by Dale Bates
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
The Heart of the Matter
By, Dwayne C. Foster
Being a youth pastor I get to see the love of teens. On again, off again relationships, heartbreaks and new loves, it’s all part of the cycle of learning how to have relationships.
I can take this blog several different directions and say that perhaps it is better not to be married, (who said that?) or that marriage is the greatest thing ever.
Well for me personally, I am a married fellow and I like being married. My wife is not only the person I live with, she is also my best friend. She is someone I highly trust in and respect.
Jesus often made it clear the importance of love and how we should treat others. This command to love others gets smacked around quite a bit.
1. Someone hurt me and I will never forgive them.
2. I loved them and they didn’t love me back; therefore I will never love anyone again.
3. I will love them only if they earn it.
Just think of the comments that you have made and have heard others say about love over the years.
This V-Day remember to show the one you love, the love of Christ. This is the best gift you can give to your sweetheart.
If you are without a sweetheart this V-Day, just give the person who God sends you a double portion of love the next time. So, you are not getting by with doing nothing, (ha!)
What an example of love Christ gave to us. He loved us so much that he laid down his life for us. He had so many options, but he chose to follow the will of his father, and follow through with the greatest love man can offer.
Christ died for the church, he died for sinners, and he died for you and me. His love never fails. It has already been proven and paid for.
So this month, the month of love, remember to give extra love this month, and share the love of Jesus with many.
Lastly, be thankful of the love of God and thank him.
Now, go buy some candy for your sweetheart or someone special and tell them you love them.
Love, your brother in Christ Jesus,
Dwayne
Posted on 01/27/2010 7:43 AM by Dwayne C. Foster
Tuesday, 05 January 2010
Sean Warren talks about D6 Posted on 01/05/2010 2:03 PM by Dwayne Foster
Monday, 21 December 2009
New Beginnings
An old gospel song I remember hearing so many times had these words: I’ll have a new body; I’ll have a new life. Like many of the old songs of the church this song is based on the premise that there is coming a day when everything old will be no more and everything will be brand new. The bible tells us in Revelation 21:1 “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.” (NKJV) The idea is that everything we know and see here will be no more and everything will be new.
The Bible also tells us that we will indeed have a new body, (I Corinthians 15:42-44). We will sing a new song, (Revelation 5:9). We will have a new name, (Revelation 2:17; 3:12), and we will have a new life that will free from pain, sorrow, sickness and death, (Revelation 21:4).
I am thankful that we have the promise of eternal things. I take great comfort in those promises. I am grateful that I can share that hope with others, especially in times of trial and loss in their lives. But I always walk away from those times knowing that there are a lot of new beginnings left in life.
I am reminded at the beginning of a new year that newness can be an everyday experience. We do not have to wait for the “sweet by and by” to experience newness in the Lord. The resolutions we made at the beginning of the year may be broken already. But each day can be a new day of living, loving and enjoying the life that our God has given us. We can rise each day with the attitude that this day is what God has granted us. We can’t do anything about what happened yesterday and tomorrow may never come, but we have this day. We can choose to live it as best we can for the glory of God.
I am thankful that the mercies of the Lord are new every day. We don’t have to rely on the experiences of what was or wait and hope for what will be some day. God grants us a new day, every day. Each day is filled with new opportunities, new experiences, and new lessons. For the child of God each day is filled with the abundant life that Jesus promised us.
Marston Carpenter
Marston Carpenter has been a General Baptist pastor for 35 years. He now pastors the Rector First General Baptist Church in Rector Arkansas. His wife is Barbara and they have 3 children, 10 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren. Brother Marston also serves on the Board of Directors of Stinson Press, Inc.
Posted on 12/21/2009 10:15 AM by Marstin Carpenter
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
The Passion to Serve - December 2009
The Passion to Serve
The passion to serve God and the desire to follow His leadership will often bring you to a place that seems surreal. You ask yourself how did I get here. What am I to do now? How do I fit into the scheme of things and then it hits you. God is gently leading you along so that you can accomplish His will. I believe that is exactly what is happening in my life and the life of Stinson Press. For the past few years I have been struggling with the direction of Stinson Press. Our mission is to get the Word out in printed form. We are doing that, but I felt like we needed to do more. And then God opened my eyes to the need to focus on the intentional spiritual formation of the family. It all started about 2004 when the concept of D6 came on the scene. It was developed by Randall House and has slowly been growing. Last September I attended the D6 conference and there I learned that a movement within the Mega churches has begun to focus on the spiritual development of the family. In many cases they have scrapped their approach to ministry if it does not meet the mission of winning and disciplining the whole family.
In April of 2007, Strong Families Innovation Alliance met with fourteen of the major mega churches including Saddleback and Willow Creek. At that meeting they recognized from what statistics that are available that 88% of the children in evangelical homes leave church at the age of 18. In a report to the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, T.C. Pinkney observed that 70% of teenagers involved in church youth groups stop attending church within two years of their high school graduation. Alarming! The Christian Faith is declining at an alarming rate because we are not discipling the next generation. Most self-identified unbelievers in this country are former church kids, says Kurt Bruner. Kurt Bruner also states,” It has been conservatively estimated that less than half of kids attending church with their parents today will be active Christians as adults. God designed the family as the primary context of faith formation yet fewer than ten percent of parents have any kind of faith discussions with their children. Families have outsourced to the church a job that can only be done at home.” Most churches have done an excellent job of worship and developing programs for all kinds of ministry, but have failed to help the family do its job. The problem is not what happen at church, but what happen in the home.
Stinson Press is changing its focus to helping families do their job at home. We have launched a new imitative called “God’s Frontline Families.” We believe the battle for are kids is in the home and we want to help families who are on the frontline of the battle do a better job of winning and discipling their kids. Let us work together to change the world for Christ.
Dale Bates is President of Stinson Press, Inc., in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. He and his wife Tanya live on the outskirts of Poplar Bluff. Dale has two children who live in Arkansas, Brad & Kristy. He attends worship at Agee Fellowship General Baptist Church. Rev. Bates has also served as Pastor for several years prior to coming to Stinson Press and Poplar Bluff.
Posted on 11/24/2009 10:17 AM by Dale Bates
Friday, 13 November 2009
(God’s Frontline Families) – Dr. James Dobson to Leave Focus on the Family - Focus on the Family founder and chairman emeritus James C. Dobson, Ph.D., will leave the ministry as its primary radio voice at the end of February.
Dr. Dobson's departure from the radio program and from official affiliation with the organization he founded in 1977 is just the "third chapter in a transition that began in 2003," when Dr. Dobson stepped down as Focus president, said Jim Daly, the ministry's president and CEO. It was a mutual decision between Dr. Dobson and the ministry's board of directors, which Dr. Dobson left in February of this year, Daly added.
"The Bible tells us that to everything there is a season — and Dr. Dobson's season at Focus on the Family has been remarkable," Daly said. "He has done a superlative job in modeling the graceful transition of leadership from one generation to the next.
"We're excited about continuing the work he began, and following the biblical principles he's always followed, to reach today's families."
February remains "a man of health and vigor" and will continue to make his voice heard in the public square, Daly said.
"Dr. Dobson is a wordsmith, but one word I don't suspect we'll hear him using is 'retirement,'" Daly explained. "We wish him great success in whatever he decides to tackle next."
"Focus on the Family has never been about one man," he added. "That's why Dr. Dobson has always refused to have his name put on any building here. It's about doing the Lord's work in helping families." (Via Focus on the Family. The Pastor's Weekly Briefing)
TrueU – While I was in Dallas Texas recently, I spoke with some gentlemen about TrueU. I am always getting pitches from publishing companies about new products and I go slowly before recommending any products to our churches until I have had an opportunity to check them out or have it checked out.
TrueU is one such program that I will use, that I am using and that I endorse. The first DVD in the series is called The Toughest Test in College. I was blown away by this video and the truth that comes from it. I feel this is very valuable for all college students and students about to go in to college.
TrueU is an apologetics training series primarily geared to help prepare high school students for the rigorous challenges and attacks that will confront them on the university campus. My guess is that it will end up benefiting a whole lot more folks than just high school seniors.” TrueU will be, in essence, a series of “prequels…” TrueU is designed primarily to help students solidify their Christian faith with foundational apologetics training. This will equip young people to stand strong in the university environment…” Dr. Del Tackett
Why are 80% of Christian teens walking away from their faith during the college years?
In this 40-minute DVD, you'll get the real story on campus life - from dorm rooms to classrooms. Watch revealing interviews with students shocked by their first semester…
“When I went to my first year at a Christian college, I was blown away by the liberal teachings of the professors and the slanting away from God’s teachings.”
(Carl F. Missouri)
Please take a moment and go to www.trueu.org and look at the program. You can see samples plus check out videos samples and see what is coming, as well as information about The Truth Project. This gets a very high score from me across the board. Please take a look at it and let me know what you think. The price to get The Toughest Test in College, Why Students are Failing to Keep Their Faith on Campus is only $1.00 each through this web site. I plan to get 50, and also give them away at an upcoming revival as well.
The second DVD in the TrueU series is also available to order now; it is called Does God Exist? It has 10, 25 minute lessons with Dr. Meyer. Great for youth group classes or a Wednesday night Study.
It is up to us to be the hands and feet to get the message from Christ to the kids by the leading of God’s Holy Spirit, thus strengthening families for generations to come.
Our mission is clear! GO!
Until next time, blessings to you and keep reaching for the stars, for they are the front porch lights to heaven’s door.
Serving Christ, Dwayne
(Bio) Dwayne Foster is the marketing director for Stinson Press, Inc. a publishing company that has been in business for nearly five decades. www.stinsonpress.com Dwayne is also the Youth Pastor at his church in Poplar Bluff. Dwayne has been with Stinson Press for five years and has been with the church on staff for going on two years. He is married; his wife Belinda is a Certified Respiratory Therapist and a lifelong General Baptist from Rector Arkansas. Dwayne has a daughter, Nicole who attends college in Arkansas, and is currently a state officer in the FFA.
Posted on 11/13/2009 8:20 AM by Dwayne Foster
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