Thought you might enjoy this interesting prayer given in Kansas at the opening session of theirSenate. It seems prayer still upsets some people.

When Minister Joe Wrightwas asked to open the new session of the Kansas Senate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this is what they heard:

“Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance.We know Your Word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it thelottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice.
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by Pastor Steve
In 1992 some friends and I attended a Regional Worship Leaders Institute Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The first evening of the conference worship leader/song writer Steve Fry shared a conversation that took place between him and God. I can’t remember every detail of the story, but the main points had an impact on my view of worship.

Steve said he had told God that as much as he loved Him, he believed he would get bored doing as the four living creatures in heaven who continually cry, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, Who was, Who is and Who is to come.” He wondered how these creatures could do this and never get tired. The Lord told him that as these creatures worship Him He gets so excited that He has to reveal a little more of Himself to them. When He does the creatures get so excited they begin their worship all over again.
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Muslim opposition to the Gospel is proverbial and the persecution that is unleashed on any Muslim who dares become Christian. This is not just ancient history; it occurs today. A number of converts in Egypt recently suffered imprisonment for their faith. And this past year, two Moroccan Christians died under suspicious circumstances. Yet, curiously, Islam has also been open to the assimilation of elements that are in evident conflict with its principles. As many as 70 percent of all Muslims are influenced by the unorthodox beliefs and practices known as “folk Islam.” A Muslim may even embrace Marxism with hardly an eyebrow being raised!

Why then are Muslims so intransigent vis-a-vis conversion to Christianity? Is it that they are unusually hardened or inherently resistant to the Gospel? Or are missionaries themselves to blame, as some would say, because they have imposed on the convert churches Western cultural forms?

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by Pastor Steve
In John 4:23 Jesus introduced us to the following three characteristics of a true worshiper. 1. A true worshiper worships the Father. 2. A true worshiper worships in spirit. 3. A true worshiper worships in truth. In this article I want to explore how a true worshiper worships the Father.

In chapter thirteen of Hebrews the writer offers us a definition of sacrificial praise. Verse fifteen reads, “Therefore by him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name.” According to this definition a sacrifice of praise consists of two things; the fruit of our lips and giving thanks to his name.
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Major Triads

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by Pastor Steve

I was leading worship in a local church a few years ago when we went through an incredible season of visitation from the Lord. Each Sunday morning during our worship service God poured out his spirit in visible ways. The congregation was so enraptured with his presence that they didn’t want the worship to end. Father as there and desired our undivided attention,

After a month or so of such visitation the pastors decided to change the way we were structuring the morning service. In a staff meeting they shared with me that the congregation was so mesmerized by the presence of God that they didn’t hear a word of the sermon. They shared they were finding it difficult to preach. They had studied and prepared for a message that they knew God had given them for the people but the people weren’t hearing it.
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by Pastor Steve

A couple of years ago I learned that I was being laid off from my job at the end of the month. I had been working at this particular job for five years and it came as somewhat of a shock that I was being let go. In the days following the announcement I experienced a broad range of emotions. One day I would be excited about the possibilities, the next day I would experience anxiety attacks. Some days I could pray in faith believing in God for miracles but other days I couldn’t pray at all. Finally, near the end of my employment, my emotions began to stabilize and I could hear God’s voice and direction more clearly.
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Cited in PC Magazine, 9/21/99, p. 36

How can you get more visitors to your website? What can you do to stimulate traffic? Here’s a checklist of31 items you need to consider. Many of these you’re probably doing already; others you meant to do and forgot about; still others you’ve never heard of. Of course, a great deal has been written about this. You’ll find links to thousands of articles on site promotion in our Web Marketing InfoCenter (www.wilsonweb.com/cat/). While we’re not breaking any new ground here, we’ve tried to summarize some of the most important techniques.

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by Pastor Steve
I have been leading worship in small groups and corporate settings for many years. No one loves worship leading more than I. The rush that comes when the band starts playing and the audience begins to respond can only be described by those who have experienced it.

While leading worship in small groups I have seen the floors of dens and living rooms covered with people on their faces in the presence of God. On many occasions I believe we could have sang “Mary had a Little Lamb” and God would have shown up.

In corporate setting I have seen people dance, shout and clap their hands while at the same time others knelt, bowed and wept. On some occasions people have been physically healed and some have come to salvation during worship services without the aid of a sermon. I have seen altars crowded with people repenting of sin, reconciling wrongs and being refreshed and filled with the Holy Spirit.
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It was as if each pair of eyes wanted to grab your attention and then flash the largest smile they could render, as if to say “pick me,” “take me with you.” Their eyes contained such hope, hope that soon some family would come and take them home.

 
Berdyansk toddlers . These were the eyes that gazed into mine as I spent two days with the children at the Berdyansk Orphanage in south eastern Ukraine, as part of CBN Kiev’s Operation Blessing outreach. I’ve never kissed as many sweet faces nor held as many sweaty, yet precious little hands as I did in those two days spent in Berdyansk. With each hug and each kiss that I gave, my heart managed to break and grow all at the same time. My heart was broken over the fact that as of now these children receive no love from earthly parents; and yet my heart was able to grow with the love of Jesus, who has compassion on these children. I have had the opportunity to visit several orphanages in both Russia and Ukraine and the care that Galina Miechiova, the headmistress of the orphanage in Berdyansk, provides for these children is like nothing I’ve ever witnessed. She loves the children as if they were her own, and throughout our time together, countless tears streamed down her cheeks as she described the needs of the children and the situations from which they have come.
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Ever since the barbaric attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, we have received numerous inquiries from people trying to understand Islamic terrorism: What is there in Islam that would lead someone to commit such atrocities? Does orthodox Islam sanction such heinous acts? Or are they the aberration of a few radical Muslims? How can a suicidal terrorist who takes the lives of thousands of innocent victims be considered a good Muslim? How should we as Christians respond to the present situation in the light of these insights? Such are the kinds of questions Christians are asking.
I can understand that Muslims in America, to try to assuage the fears—and the animosity—of the public, have been speaking out in an effort to distance themselves from those who perpetrate such crimes. In recent days, there have been news items and interviews with Muslims on this topic in the local newspaper, or on TV, all affirming that “Islam does not teach or approve such actions.” We are told that “Islam means ‘Peace,’ and is a religion of peace,” or that “taking one’s own life is not Islamic and is disapproved.”

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