Is America Post-Christian?

In a recent Newsweek article, Lisa Miller boldly states that America is no longer a Christian nation. You can find the article in the August 31 edition of Newsweek magazine or at this link http://www.newsweek.com/id/212155. Miss Miller states that "although America was founded by Christians, and according to a 2008 survey, 76 percent of us continue to identify as Christian," most American's spiritual beliefs are more in line with the Rig Veda, the most ancient Hindu scripture, than they are with the Word of God. I would encourage you to read this brief article. it is eye opening to say the least.

Lisa Miller's statement is reinforced by recent surveys and polling data. For example, a 2008 Pew Forum survey showed that 65% of Americans believe that there are many roads that lead to heaven, including 37% of Evangelical Christians. Sadly, in this post-modern age, most people prefer a deli approach to religion and spirituality. In other words, they would prefer to pick and choose what works the for them. There are no spiritual absolutes; there are no orthodox beliefs.

How should we as Christians respond to such a denial of orthodox Christianity and biblical truth? First of all, the Church needs to reassume its responsibility to teach doctrinal truth. Twelve times in his letters to Timothy, Paul exhorts his young student as to the importance of correct doctrine. As a matter of fact, Paul repeatedly uses the phrase, "sound doctrine."

Some contemporary Evangelical leaders are realizing the value of a return to strong doctrinal teaching. Addressing this exact point, Ravi Zacarias has said, "The problem with America today is not America. It is the Church. We have become very shallow as Christians, very shallow. We have become masters at engineering feelings without much thought. Very little thinking goes on at Church."

Secondly, as believers, we must realize that we are the spiritual hope of our country. We must be determined and committed to letting our spiritual light shine. Jesus said in Matthew 5:15, "no one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket." Let me be clear, our responsibility is not to protest those who disagree with us, or fight with those who believe differently. The best way for us to counter ungodliness is with a godly life. May God help us to live in such a way that we continue to influence our neighbors, our co-workers, and our country to be guided by biblical beliefs and Christian values.

PRAY FOR LAURA!

Without a doubt, one of the greatest privileges and one of the most awesome responsibilities that God can entrust to a local congregation is to be the sending church for a missionary. Biblically speaking, it is a more intimate fulfillment of the Great Comission. It is one thing to give your mission dollars; it is more difficult to give your children. Nevertheless, that ought to be the goal of every church.

This week we have the honor of sending another one of our church family to the mission field. Laura Machado will be leaving for Turin, Italy on Wednesday, August 19. Laura is a product of our church, having come to Christ through this ministry. She is a 2001 graduate of Dade Christian School and also a graduate of Moody Bible Institute.

As a missionary with AVANT ministries, Laura will be working with a team of nine other missionaries to reach the city of Turin with the Gospel. Less than 2% of the city of Turin claim to be evangelical Christians. Additionally, it is one of the leading centers for Satanic worship in the world today. Yes, Turin is a city that desperately needs the Gospel!

Sunday, we had the privilege of praying for Laura and then joyfully releasing her to fulfill God's will for her life. That's exactly what the Church of Antioch did with Paul and Barnabbas. Acts 13:4 states, "Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on then, they sent them away."

Let me encourage you to pray for Laura in the weeks and months to come. Believe me, she will really need our prayers. Here are several practical ways that you can pray for Laura and her ministry to Italy...

1. Pray that she would adapt quickly to the culture and learn the language.

2. Pray that God would protect her.

3. Pray that God would provide the remainder of her support.

4. Pray that God would bond her heart with her teammates.

5. Pray for the Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of the people of Turin.

We are proud of David!

On November 12, 2008 David Ashley risked his life to save the lives of 12 of his fellow soldiers. Stationed in Mosul, Iraq David's platoon came under attack when an Iraqi soldier opened fire using an AK -47 charged with a 75 - round drum. Although David had been shot in the face, he instinctively put his life on the line. Commenting on David's bravery, his Captain stated, "(Those soldiers) are alive today because this youngster put himself in harm's way for the greater good." You can read the entire story in the Fort Hood Sentinel - http://www.forthoodsentinel.com/story.php?id=1331. In recognition of his courageous act, David was presente with the Silver Star Medal, which is the third highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the armed forces.

David is a product of New Testament Baptist Church and a 2001 graduate of Dade Christian School. Barbara Ashley, David's proud mother, is a tremendous first grade teacher at the Master's Academy and an active member of our ministry. David returned to the US in December of 2008 to recover from his injuries and will complete his military service at the end of September. Please pray that God would give David direction as to what his next step should be.

David we are so proud of you! Thank you for laying your life on the line in the fight for freedom!

HOW'S YOUR HEARING?

Well, it has happened again! My ears are clogged for the second time this year. The official medical diagnosis for my condition is an excessive accumulation of cerumen. In laymen’s terms, I’ve got too much wax in my ear.

Six months ago when one of my ears was blocked, I went to one of those quick medical clinics at the pharmacy. A large lady took a small instrument which she promised would not hurt me and then performed what seemed like brain surgery. She dug so far into my ear that I thought I was going to scream. After each “dig” she would proudly show me the newest piece of wax, smugly proclaiming that this chunk was larger than the last one. Upon leaving, I swore that I would never let that happened again. Well, guess what?

This time though, both of my ears are clogged. Needless to say, it has really affected my hearing. Conversations are muzzled, I can’t hear the phone and I have to strain to hear the television. Poor Vickie and Mark are tired of yelling and having to repeat things over and over. The simple truth is that I have come to realize that a lack of hearing affects every area of life. Now, let me be quick to say that I realize that my hearing problem is minimal and does not even compare to those who suffer from severe to total hearing loss. Nevertheless, it does perfectly illustrate what takes place in the life of many believers.

Hebrews 3:7, 8 state, “That is why the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today when you hear His voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled.’” The Israelites were guilty of ignoring God’s voice. God repeatedly spoke to them through the voice of His prophets, yet they turned away as if their ears were blocked and they could not hear. Like the Israelites, if we are not careful we can allow the “wax” of sin and the cares of life to build up in our hearts causing us not to hear the Lord’s voice.

How do we avoid spiritual hearing loss? First of all, we must keep the divine communication channels open. That is accomplished through frequent confession of our sins. David said in Psalm 66:18, “If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” Remember that a pure heart is the channel through which God speaks. Secondly, after God performs spiritual surgery, we must continually expose ourselves to His voice. As His sheep, it is important for us to regularly hear His voice (John 10:27). Remember that it is only through the words of the Shepherd that we are able to find the direction that we so desperately need!

So, how’s your hearing?

Fattened Cows and Drunken Women

I love the boldness of the Old Testament Prophets. They certainly did not "beat around the bush." They had a propensity to tell it just like it was. That is certainly true in Amos 4:1-5

Amos was a layman, not a professional prophet. He ministered in a day in which materialism and social evils were prevalent. Additionally, the Israelites, specifically the Northern Kingdom, had fallen into idolatry. Their worship had become paganized. Although they continued with many of the customs that were mandated in the Old Testament Law, their worship was empty, ritualistic, and practically worthless.

Amos sarcastically refers to their meaningless religious rituals in verse 4 - "Go ahead and offer sacrifices to the idols at Bethel. Keep on disobeying at Gilgal. Offer sacrifices each morning, and bring your tithes every three days."

It would be easy for us to conclude that these verses have no relevance for our 21st century lives, but that quite honestly is not true. Like the Israelites, we can fall into a spiritual rut, we can continue to do what God expects, but do it with no feeling, no enthusiasm, and no passion. We can even justify our spiritual lethargy with "legitimate excuses": "The music was not contemporary enough!" or "The message was not entertaining enough!" In reality, neither of those ingredients is necessary for us to worship God. All that we really need for true worship is Him!

The remedy for empty worship is simple: We must return to Him! Five times in this chapter Amos reiterates the Lord's desire for His people to return to Him (4:6-11). "Return to Me and live" is the key thought in the next chapter as well.

Amos' challenge transcends the circumstances of his day and is relevant for us. Let us not worship like "fattened cows" or "drunken women." (Ladies, please do not get upset with me, read Amos 4:1) Our God is worthy of transparent, sincere, and passionate worship! Let's look for opportunities to worship Him as only He deserves to be worshipped!

Our Loss is Ecuador's Gain

We are losing one of our great families in LA CONEXION, the Spanish ministry of NTBC’s Broward location. For the past four years Ivan and Ximena Robilino have not only been faithful church members, but also a part of our leadership team. Ximena has faithfully served as a member of our praise and worship team. She also began a monthly ladies meeting in her home which proved to be a tremendous blessing to many of our ladies. Ivan was our first “sound guy” and for the past few years has led our audio/visual team.

Both Ivan and Ximena are from Cumbayá , Ecuador. Two years ago in our Missions Conference we hosted the Davoll family, missionaries to Ecuador. The Davolls are headed to, of all places, the city of Cumbayá to plant a church. Since that time, both families have been praying for God’s blessings upon this future missionary endeavor.

Ivan is an investment and insurance advisor. In recent years his client base has been growing extensively in Latin America, specifically In Ecuador. Recently, the Robilinos shared with us the fact that they feel that God is leading them to return home, back to Cumbayá. Their return will actually accomplish three purposes: The Robilinos are able to return to their native city, Ivan will be able to dedicate more time to his Ecuadorian clients, and they will be able to help the Davolls in their church planting efforts.

Though we are personally saddened by the fact that they will no longer be a part of our weekly fellowship, we realize that we are not really losing them. We are only extending our ministry into Ecuador. This is truly exciting for us, because one of the goals that we established early in our Spanish ministry was for God to use our people to impact their countries and their people with the Gospel. That is exactly what Ivan and Ximena are going to be able to do. How cool is that?

Presently, LA CONEXION is represented by believers from some 15 different countries. Many of them still have family and friends in their native lands, family and friends who do not know the Lord. Our challenge is to somehow reach those people with the Gospel. Please pray with us that God will increase our vision, enlarge our burden, and give us some divine direction as to what we can do to further His kingdom.