My Heart Goes Out!

Today a fellow blogger and a close friend of mine suffered a huge hit in his life. It is one of those things that is easy to lose control and to get frustrated on but no this guy.
My friend's job was at a company called Sports Belle. Sports Belle distributed jerseys and other athletic equipment. They even provided the uniforms for Tennessee's basketball and football teams. Well Sports Belle caught fire last night. This means that he may be out of work for a little while. I would freak out. Not my buddy though.
My friend said that no one was hurt and that is what was important. My friend commented on a news blog and the only thing he was upset about was that the local volunteer fire departments were not getting printed for their efforts to help fight the fire. I was blown away by this. I would more than likely be ranting and raving about poor pitifully me. I would demand to know what happened and deep down inside be looking for some one to blame. Not my friend.
My heart goes out to my pal who is a model citizen, a great friend, and the type of Christian that you could watch and learn what it is to be humble. Now he of course would dispute what I have said about him. He would claim that he is not that important and just trying to fight the battle with Jesus by his side. No credit, honor, or glory is ever taken by this guy. He can decline the compliments but the value that he and his wife bring to me and my wife is something that he cannot denounce.
My heart goes out to my friend and I pray that he will rebound fast and move forward(I know he will). I would say that if you need anything you can call and ask but we all know that that would be pointless. You don't ask for anything unless you ask for it in prayer! Just know my friend that we here at the Foulks House value you and your wife and we are even bold enough to say that we love you guys!

Blessed!

My plans were to post on Friday. I have given up on blogging everyday for now and am content with blogging a couple of times a week. I was planning to post on Friday but due to the fact that I am now a Dad that is least of priorities. I am going tp e taking a short(2 days to 2 weeks) break on post. This is due to a need to of being a new dad.My daughter was born on Feb. 14, 08 at 8:51 pm . Get this. She weighted 10lbs 12 oz and was 20 inches long! One big baby! So don't think that I have gone awol. Just taking a few days off to realize my blessing@

Prescribed by the Great Physician(sent to me in an email)

The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember...
Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman who was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was too religious
Timothy had an ulcer..AND
Lazarus was dead!

Now! No more excuses!
God can use you to your full potential.
Besides you aren't the message, you are just the
messenger.
Have a great day!!! The SON is shining and He
can certainly use you!



Dear God, I have a problem, it's Me.

There is no key to happiness. The door is always
open.

Do the math .. count your blessings.

Faith is the ability to not panic.

Laugh every day, it's like inner jogging.
If you worry, you didn't pray . If you pray,
don't worry.

Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be
bent out of shape.

When we get tangled up in our problems, be still.
God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.

Who's your Buddy?

How true is this picture? For some not all that true. Well I would say for most. Not just for the lost but the saved also(This will probably get a comment asking who is lost,I believe the lost to be any who have not accepted Jesus has their savior). We have alot of people in our Church today who don't understand something really important about Jesus. He is our friend. To any person there are four stages of relationships between themselves and others.
1. Stranger
2. Acquaintance
3. Friend
4. Enemy
To the lost He is a stranger. To the prayer warriors He is a friend. To those who challenge them He is their enemy. to most He is the guy you see outside while you mow and wave but never even think about going over to talk to Him. He is there. He greets you and you greet Him. He blesses you with a chance for friendship and you are too busy to stop and talk. He comes over to talk to you and you just want Him gone so you can get back to the game.
Jesus wants to talk to you and wants to be your close friend that you talk to on a daily basis whenever you can. He want to be the guy that without Him there you don't want to watch the game. He is God but He is also your friend. Even those who don't want to know Him He wants to be a friend with. Have you ever done that in school. Wanted to meet some body and when you do you find out they really have no interest in you or they just plain dislike you. Maybe you knew some one that gave you that look and when you were in the same room you had that thick atmosphere that made it hard not to notice they didn't like. We do that to Jesus. We let Him know we don't want Him by not praying, not reading His word, not allowing Him to be part of our lives no matter how hard He tries, by just not looking at Him. He knows what you mean with that! He wants to be a friend to you, to me, to everyone.
If I had to choose one friend for life I would want the friend who raised the dead. The one who loves me and will forgive me no matter how screwed(sorry about the language) up I am. He wants me! Why would I not want Him? Lets get the word out that Jesus is our friend!everyone should know this. Look at the picture! It is true guys and gals. Who is your Buddy? It could be Jesus! Let Him in!

Story I Received in an Email

In a small mid western conservative town, a new bar/tavern started a
building to open up their business. The local Baptist church started a
campaign to block the bar from opening with petitions and prayers. Work
progressed, however right up till the week before opening, when a
lightning strike hit the bar and it burned to the ground.

The church folks were rather smug in their outlook after that, till the
Bar owner sued the church on the grounds that the church was ultimately
responsible for the demise of his building, either through direct or
indirect actions or means.

The church vehemently denied all responsibility or any connection to the
buildings demise in its reply to the court.
&nb sp;
As the case made it's way into court, the judge looked over the
Paperwork at the hearing and commented, "I don't know how I'm going to
decide this, but as it appears from the paper work, we have a bar owner that
believes in the power of prayer, and an entire church congregation that doesn't.

Mother Teresa is Disrespected

After 66 years of hardcore, dedicated service to the cause of Christ Mother Teresa died(ten years ago). This was a woman who didn't have alot in life because she had sacrificed it all to God. The only thing she asked when she was dying was that her letters she had written over the period of her 66 year long servitude be destroyed. Did she get it...No!
What she got was that the church held onto her letters and made a book out of them. They say that it will help people to better understand her and her work.
Some letter are letters that she has written where she questions here faith. Atheist are having a field day with that. He is some news to you. Every one questions their faith. Everybody will come to points in their lives where they will say they have doubts. They would be lying to sya they don't. We still have to seek answers. We need to be reassured. He would be nice if we didn't but we do. We have to study the Bible so we can see how God works and learn to look for Him in nature, objects, people, places, in everything we can find Him.
So what if she questioned her own faith from time to time. She still stayed true and continued to work for God, speak of God, show His love, and all that other jazz that most of who call our lives Christian lives never learn to do. Questioning our faith can actually do us good. We can sometimes learn how small we really are, how little we understand, to dig deeper for the answers, lead to more prayer which is always a great things, lead to more reading of our Bible, and a revival of our faith.
Just because she was considered a "Super-Christian" by many changes nothing. She was still human and still dealt with alot of the same doubts that we do. She just learned to over come them. It is wrong for us not honor her wishes and destroy the letters. Wrong in all ways. Shame on us.

Why I Believe.

I believe because a life with out God is a waste of a life. If life is all there is then that opens the door as to why we are here. I don’t believe that we are here to be a happy person for only a short time and then die. I can’t begin to tell you the sorrow that comes from just thinking this is it.
I believe because I see God. I read his word and know that what He said has been true in everything I have ever done. He wrote about my life and yours before we were ever born. Thousands of years ago the Bible was given to us and yet to this very day it remains true and not outdated. Yes the surroundings have changed but the truth and the principles are still true every bit today has they were then.
I believe because nothing else has put in my place like God has. He doesn’t play games. It is serious. Heaven or hell. Life or death. Good or evil. We have a choice to make and it is the biggest choice that we could ever imaging. God doesn’t play.
I believe because love is present. We don’t see it all the time but even in the darkest hours that we face. Even when people are killing each other because they can. If we look close enough we will see the love that God sends to us in every form. We are not capable of that, only God is.
To believe is to have faith that we are not just an big chain reaction that is the result of billions of years of evolution from creatures that are still present today(doesn’t make sense to me at least). Life is bad. People are cruel. To think that this is the only good that I will ever see is grounds for insanity. No I will believe. There is more. There is God.

Hurting for a Prayer

So I was thinking about prayer and how at times it seems stronger than others. So I had to sit down and think…”What is it that as separated my prayers in the past from the prayers I now pray?”
Answers began to pour into my small mind. I remember a time when sin was a big part of my life and I lived in it knowingly and did nothing to change it. Night after night I would I would prayer for to be forgiven for the same sins because I committed them over and over and over again. I felt so unworthy to pray. So after a while my prayer life was a crash scene of confusion. “I don’t know what to do..” I would pray. But I always knew then that my answer was to simply stop doing the sins that were making me feel like God hated to hear me coming. It was that simple. Yes I on occasion sin those same sins. The difference is that I do not do them and then say “Oh well I can pray for them tonight and they will be fine.” God hates sin. It separates us from God. God hears the prayers of the holy and to be in sin and not try to stop is going to take the power of our prayers down to little or nothing.
The next problem I thought of was when I started to pray I would not feel like God was really listening because I didn’t know how to pray right.
I prayed anyway. I forced myself at times to go before God and give plea my needs and those of others out to Him. After a while I was asked to lead prayer in the middle of the pod. It wasn’t long before big words were getting used in my prayer and others were praying aloud in agreement with me. I went to bed one night and before I went to sleep I had a friend tell me that I needed to be careful not take glory from my prayers. Others were counting on me to pray for and with them. I thought about what he had said and that night I tossed and turned. I saw myself in my mind standing before the pod and and praying loudly and using five dollar words.Then it hit me! God doesn’t care about those things. I did! I had to ask the leaders of the church to find some one else to pray before the people. My prayers were not to God but to praise myself. To this day hold back what I say when I pray aloud and that keeps me from getting caught up in pride. I love the spotlight. I have to work to put God first if I want to be able to pray with power. I am not able at this time to pray aloud like the Spirit tells me I can because I am vain. Limit your exposure and give it to God for prayers that move mountains.
The last thing I thought of was alot like the second problem. I just didn’t pray. I would be asked to pray for some and agree. I always intended to pray for them but never seemed to remember when I was on my face. Pray for them ,pray with them. Pray at all times of the day. you don’t have to let others see it you don’t have to disappear. Pray as you walk. Pray as you sit. Pray as you drive. Pray whenever you can. Watch you prayer life grow.
Prayer is like working out in the gym. You will start out small but with alot of reps you will soon get strong in what to pray for. You will be able to pray long and with more passion towards God then you ever knew you was capable of. Praying is talking to God. So sometimes after or before you pray get in word. Or just be still and don’t talk and focus on God. Listen for His voice. Prayer is only hurt when we fall short.

DON'T BE THE LAST STANDING.

This was sent to me in an email and is the coolest on I have gotten in a while. Enjoy it and don't be the last standing.

Age of the Earth

Fulfillment- (Premarital Counseling)

Don't you love that your wife or husband is the part that completes you. She or he makes you feel fulfilled. Right? Wrong my friend! You spouse cannot fulfill no more than you can fulfill yourself. Like when you go out and by stuff but you still need more stuff so you keep on buying and buying. It will never end. You cannot be satisfied. You will always want more than yo have. It is the same way with you wife our husband.
Lets break it down. Men your wife is going to fail you. She is going to disappoint you. Dinner may be bad one night, the house a wreck, the clothes not folded, or she may actually lie to you. Ladies your husband is going to want to watch the game while you are cleaning, he will fall asleep on you new couch with in a week, his socks will not be turned right side out when you go to wash them, and you know what...? We will forget on of those holiday's that you think we should be able to recite in our sleep(friendly joke, we should know those dates).
Here is my point. you are going to let each other down alot. If it is fulfillment you are looking for you should not hold you breath. Fir you will turn blue and pass out. Fulfillment is not deserved. We are deserving of hell because of our sins. God never sad that we should live a life of complete enjoyment.We are told of hardship and trials. If you want fulfillment you better find Jesus. Because no person, place,or thing will give it to you ever. People are not fulfilling.Only Jesus is.

Discovery Gives More Credibility/Validity to Christian Scriptures

Discovery Gives More Credibility/Validity to Christian Scriptures

Complete Post from Splinters of Silver
Discovery Channel: Ancient Tablet Vouches for Biblical King

“Non-biblical evidence for individuals named in the Bible is rare, particularly for people who were not royals. But an ancient Babylonian tablet provides further proof that a king and his servant — both named in the Book of Jeremiah — existed in the 6th century B.C.

According to an announcement by Assyriologist Michael Jursa and the British Museum, the small clay tablet from the museum's collections bears the name of Babylonian officer Nebo-Sarsekim. In chapter 39 of the Book of Jeremiah, this individual is described as being with King Nebuchadnezzar II at the siege of Jerusalem in the year 587 B.C.”

“Brody thinks the tablet represents "further verification that certain historical elements within the Book of Jeremiah are valid."”

"I'll Pray for You"- Not!

Lazarus Resources wrote.....
A couple of weeks ago, we had a baby dedication during the church service. As part of that dedication, the congregation is asked to promise to pray for and care for that child. When asked to answer in the affirmative as a group, I stayed silent. That's right, I did not agree to pray for that child as he or she grew up. You know why? Because I know that I'm not going to.
For the full post click here

Tomorrow.

I will not be posting any blog on Friday August 3, 2007. I want to take time away from my PC and think of the better things in life. Like oh say, life it self.
On a day like today I am certain that I will remember the tragic events that took place in Minneapolis. It is a said thing happened. I am certain that I will remember it like I did the day 9/11 happened, like Columbine, like Oklahoma city, or more recently Virgina Tech.
It may not have as high as a death toll as some of those but what is to be remembered is that it is one of those days were people are shocked. We say this shouldn't happen. What went wrong? Why did this happen? If you are like me you believe in the redeeming power of Jesus Christ and all the truth that the Bible speaks about. The said part is this. People are lost. People die that are lost. There is eternal life and it is one or the other, really good or really bad. Once you have no more life it is too late. No take backs, no re dues, no I wasn't ready. Life is serious.
We have blessings in this. A school bus with I think I heard around 50 kids on it fell with the bridge and all were alive. Only two lanes of the bridge were open. We see blessings in this. Even though the sorrow covers our eyes we can still see it could have been worse. Alot of people were spared. Thank you Jesus for that.
I pray that we not point fingers at what went wrong when we find out the cause of this all. I pray that we learn to love each other so that we can forgive.Not the type of love we know(the feeling of love) but the very action of love. Loving some one or something even though you are angry or sad.
Sadly this does happens. Lets not just say too bad, or 9/11 was worse. I about cried when they killed Saddam. I went to a "Christian website" were a the blog owner had posted the video and placed a caption under it reading this....
"Lets see if those 72 virgins come to save him from hell!lol."
How terrible are we? We should all be grief stricken.Yet the world was rejoicing! Saddam died. He went to hell. He never, ever, ever accepted Jesus. When we cheer for that we cheer for satan. When we are not affected by the death of the eternally lost we are saying to satan that we don't care. There is no love in us. Wake up guys! Lets fight for the lost. Lets mourn for those who won't be going inside the gates.
Jesus wept and so should we. If not with tears then with the spirit we are blessed with. Realize that everyday is a gift. We have a task to do. Preach the gospel so people do not die in sin. One day when I get to heaven I will look around and I know there will be people I lived with my whole life that I don't see there with me. I fear that I will find out that the very man I worked beside for 10 or 15 years will not be in heaven and I had the chance 5 to 6 days a week to sow a seed. How accountable am I? Completely if I never try.
With that said I am taking tomorrow off of has much as possible to praise God and to pray to him to allow me to serve him better. To serve others better. I am about to write a short prayer on this post and I ask that you pray it with me, for me, you , and any other who reads this or needs this( that would be everyone I know). When you are done you can comment to say amen, add on more to the prayer, or not do anything after you pray. Even if you don't agree with everything I said or have ever said you can pray this one with me.Thank you and God bless you.
Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father. Thank you so much for this life. Everyday is truly a blessing. I pray that you give the family s of those who died today comfort in your arms. I know that all things work together for the good and I just pray that whatever reason you allowed this to happen for, that you allow us to see the good and obey your will even when we don't understand. Please use this to lead others to you.Open the eyes and the hearts of lost. Recharge my spiritual battery and let me do your will here on earth. Thank you so much. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Pray Request

The daughter of one of the guys I with at Lowe's today died in a car crash. The guys name is Patrick. He is the Manager over several Lowe's Warehouses in East Tennessee. He is a loving family man. I just ask that you pray for peace to come to him and for this to be used to glorify God some how. I don't always see what God is doing but that is why he is God.

Push

P.U.S.H stands for something.
Pray Until Something Happens.PUSH!!
Pray for your needs and/or others, pray to realize the answer to the prayer, and keep on praying and praying and praying.
# 1 thing wrong with most Christian’s prayer life…..They don’t pray.