An Unlikely Animal Pair

People often ask me whether animals will be in Heaven. Their second question is whether they’ll ever see their pets again. To some people, these are merely sentimental questions. To others, they are very important. Children especially want to know the answers. What do we tell them when they ask?

Scripture says a great deal about animals, portraying them as Earth’s second most important inhabitants. God entrusted animals to us, and our relationships with animals are a significant part of our lives.

Isaiah 11:6-9 speaks of a coming glorious era on Earth when “the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

Some interpreters contend that this passage speaks only of the Millennium, but Isaiah anticipates an eternal Kingdom of God on Earth. Isaiah 65:17 and 66:22 specifically speak of the New Earth. Sandwiched between them is a reference very similar to that in Isaiah 11: “ ‘The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. . . . They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,’ says the Lord” (65:25).

This video of an unlikely animal pair is just a foretaste of that peace to come.



(Click here if you are unable view the video.)


www.randyalcorn.blogspot.com
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A Life of Humility

After seeing my recent post about Francis Schaeffer, my friend Doug Nichols, founder and international director emeritus of Action International Ministries, emailed me this story. To me, given my respect for both men, it's priceless. Thanks for sharing it with us, Doug. And thanks for being the same kind of man Francis Schaeffer showed himself to be the night you met him.

Francis Schaeffer slept here
by Doug Nichols

In 1966 I joined Operation Mobilization for a year of ministry in France, but spent two years in India instead. While in London that summer, at the one-month OM orientation, I volunteered to work on a clean-up crew late one night.

Around 12:30am I was sweeping the front steps of the Conference Centre when an older gentleman approached and asked if this was the OM conference. I told him it was, but most everyone was in bed.

He had a small bag with him and was dressed very simply. He said he was attending the conference, so I said, "Let me see if I can find you a place to sleep." Since there were many different age groups at OM, I thought he was an older OM’er.

I took him to the room where I had been sleeping on the floor with about 50 others and, seeing that he had nothing to sleep on, laid some padding and a blanket on the floor and used a towel for a pillow. He said it would be fine and he appreciated it very much.

As he was preparing for bed, I asked him if he had eaten. He had not as he had been travelling all day. I took him to the dining room but it was locked. So after picking the lock I found cornflakes, milk, bread, butter and jam—all of which he appreciated very much.

As he ate, we began to fellowship. I asked where he was from. He said he and his wife had been working in Switzerland for several years in a ministry mainly to hippies and travellers. It was wonderful to talk with him and hear about his work and those who had come to Christ. When he finished eating, we turned in for the night.

However, the next day I was in trouble! The leaders of OM really "got on my case." "Don't you know who that man is on the floor next to you?" they asked. "It is Dr. Francis Schaeffer, the speaker for the conference!"

I did not know they were going to have a speaker, nor did I know who Francis Schaeffer was, nor did I know they had a special room prepared for him!

After Francis Schaeffer became well known because of his books, and I had read more about him, I thought about this occasion many times—this gracious, kind, humble man of God sleeping on the floor with OM recruits! This was the kind of man I wanted to be.

Of course, I will never attain the intellect, knowledge or wisdom of Francis Schaeffer. But I can reach out to younger people and minister to them in Christ's name by living a life of humility. What about you?

www.randyalcorn.blogspot.com
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Announcing the Winners of the LifeChange Book Gift Set Giveaway

Here are the winners from May’s LifeChange book gift set giveaway. Each of the three winners will receive a book set that includes The Grace and Truth Paradox, The Purity Principle, and The Treasure Principle.

The randomly drawn winners are:

1) pastoralmusings
2) PMurray (mdmurray23)
3) JDJ (jdj116)

It’s our privilege to also choose another winner:

Lisa (lisa-deadlinedeception.blogspot)

All winners, please e-mail me at stephanie (at) epm.org with your mailing address.

The LifeChange book gift set is also on sale from EPM through the end of May for $18.00, 40% off the retail price of $29.97. It's a great gift for high school or college graduates.

Check back at Randy’s blog on June 8 for the next book giveaway—we’ll be offering blog readers the chance to win a fiction book of their choice.

Blessings,

Stephanie Anderson
Promotions Director
Eternal Perspective Ministries
www.epm.org

Stewarding Your Time

In light of my recent post on biblical illiteracy, I wanted to give some practical suggestions for being a better steward of the time God gives us each day, especially for making time for the study of God's Word.

I encourage you to keep track of how you spend your time for one week. You can use this time management sheet (PDF) to keep track of everything you do in a day, but most specifically what you do with your discretionary time.

For example, write down time spent:

Sleeping
Driving
Stores, shopping
Eating (will be easy to keep track of on a day you fast!)
Talking with spouse
Playing with kids
Reading to kids
Working around house
Small talk (phone or together) with friends
Church
Newspaper
Magazines
Reading books (designate which)
Bible reading
Prayer
Exercise
Video games
Internet
Email reading and responding
Radio
Television, and break down time spent in terms of:

- News
- Sports—football, etc. (be specific, which games, etc., and the total time for each so you can add up)
- Regular programming (probably helpful to break it down: e.g. Lost, 1 hour; Rerun of 24, 1 hour; Star Trek reruns, 2 hours, etc.)
- Movies (on TV, or DVD, video), 4 hours; name the movie as a reminder
- Other

Be able to add up your specifics to a total in each category, rather than just estimating a total (because we always underestimate). Of course, you can sometimes do two things at once. For example, listen to the radio (or Scripture audio) while driving, or exercise while reading (I often do this on my stationary bike) or watching TV. In that case, just note you did two things at once and credit the time spent to both of them.

When we keep track of how we spend our time, it makes us better stewards because we become aware of what we otherwise don't really know. For example, people normally watch far more TV than they think. Becoming aware is the first step of stewardship, which puts us in a position to decide, "I want to spend more time reading some great books and God's Word, and talking with my wife and reading to my kids, and to steward this time I can reduce my television watching by 10 hours each week." Again, we won't do this without a clear picture of how we're currently spending our time.

When I was talking to my wife Nanci about this, she reminded me that when she had food allergy issues, she was supposed to write down each and every thing she ate for several weeks. She found this very helpful. As with eating, when it comes to how you spend your time, simply knowing what you're actually doing makes a huge difference in your ability to evaluate and make positive, God-glorifying changes.

I admit sometimes I really do struggle with how quickly time runs out each day. I try to focus on the Lord and His Word and figure out the few things in life He really wants me to do. Every day—including this one—offers me a hundred distractions, not just bad things, but good things. I tell myself that I must say no to the vast majority of good things that I might be able to say yes to those very few things God really has for me. Jesus says to Martha in Luke 10: “Few things are necessary, really only one. Mary has chosen the better portion and it will not be taken from her.”


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The JESUS Film: "Show it Again"

One of my favorite ministries is the JESUS film project, which I have personally witnessed at work in powerful ways in China, Cambodia and Mexico. (More about that later in this blog.)

Every word in the film is from the gospel of Luke, and it includes at the end an invitation to receive Christ. In countries with low literacy, people can't read the Bible even if it's been translated into their language; but all of them can understand the JESUS Film, which is Scripture on a screen, God made visible. I read an amazing story from the JESUS Film about divine intervention in what seemed to be a hopeless situation:

A “JESUS” film team was returning home from showing the film to a village of unreached people. They were tired, but happy for what God had done. It was late at night, as they drove along the isolated road in a rough area…a time when thieves were active. Suddenly on the darkened road, a red light flashed behind them. It was the police.

“Where did you get this equipment? Did you steal it? Show us your receipts, your paperwork. Prove that you are the owners,” the police demanded.

Because the portable projection equipment and generators had been given by partners in America and shipped in a large batch, the team didn’t have individual receipts. Unable to prove they were not thieves, the police took it all, for the moment ending their ministry.

Over the next three weeks, the team leader repeatedly went to the police station. He showed them his ID, correspondence and other documents demonstrating they were the owners, all to no avail. “We don’t believe you. Now reveal what you are really doing. Show us how to use this equipment…present the film—if it is yours.”

The team leader agreed, saying, “My team will come tonight and set up the equipment, demonstrating that we are familiar with the projector, generator and the screen. We will show you the film.” The police gave instructions for the showing to be held in the barracks.

What a shock when the team arrived. They found 3,000 people waiting to see “JESUS.” After the film, the people were so touched that the commander said, “Show it again!” The next night there were about 6,000 people—police and family members attended. And in all, the team estimated that half of those in attendance responded and indicated decisions for Christ! Oh yes, the police returned all the equipment…with their blessings. The team is no longer stopped, and the gospel continues to go out in this area unhindered.
What a testimony of how God protects and uses the teams, and the equipment given by partners like you—so that unreached people might see and understand “JESUS” in their own language!

This is Randy again: The JESUS Film (http://www.jesusfilm.org/) is arguably the single greatest evangelistic tool in history apart from the Word of God itself. I'll never forget years ago crowding into two homes in East Asia where the JESUS video was being shown by Christians to their neighbors. I counted 33 in one home and 37 in the other, eyes glued to the screen, listening in their own language to every word spoken by Jesus, straight from the Word of God. I have seen the work and the workers first-hand in several countries, and I can vouch for the integrity, vision, and biblical foundation of this ministry. I encourage you to consider if God would have you invest in eternity by getting involved in financial or prayer support for this wonderful work of the Lord.

And here's another ministry opportunity that's pretty cool: anyone with a cell phone can now text a Bible to a persecuted Christian. For just $5, Open Doors can print, ship, and deliver a Bible to a believer who does not have God's Word. Simply text the word Bible to 20222 and wait for a confirmation text message. Send the word "Yes" in response to the confirmation text message. That's it. You sent a Bible. I did it myself. A one-time charge of $5 will be added to your mobile phone bill for each text message, and you can send up to five per month. For more information, go to the Open Doors website.


www.randyalcorn.blogspot.com
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Francis Schaeffer: Intellectual and Christ-lover

Friday, May 15, is the 25th anniversary of the home-going of Francis Schaeffer, intellectual and Christ-lover. When I was a new believer, I was profoundly influenced by what he wrote; Schaeffer's philosophical and apologetic writings, among them He is There and He is Not Silent, shaped my thinking in the seventies. (For those unfamiliar with Schaeffer, you can find excerpts from nearly all of his books at www.rationalpi.com/theshelter/sitemap.html)

As a young believer, books and bookstores had an enormous influence on my own life. My first youth pastor did me a huge favor—he gave me a key to his office, so I could go in any time and read his books, hundreds of them. I read everything I could get my hands on. There was an elderly couple in our church, who had a Christian book store in their house in Gresham, Oregon, my hometown. I would go there several days a week, for hours at a time. They would point out books for me to read. They introduced me to Lewis, Schaeffer, and Tozer. Ultimately, everything I've ever written has been affected by those three men.

I still have a wonderful hand written letter Francis Schaeffer wrote to me after I wrote to him as a college student, telling him how God had shaped me through his books.

May 11, 1976

Dear Randy:

Thank you for your letter of April 21. I want to thank you for your letter. It was a real encouragement to me. I can't write you a long note. The enclosed slip will tell you why, but I did want you to know that really your letter touched me and it is a letter like yours that gives me the courage to go on. With the busyness of my life it's not been easy to write these books, and the thing which has made it worthwhile is the way the Lord has used them in so many parts of the world and with so many people.

I would ask you if you would pray for this new film and book. The title will be How Should We Then Live? Revell is releasing the book in November. The film will be released at a series of seminars across the United States, Lord willing, early next year. I've worked on this film and book for almost two years and I must say I feel overwhelmingly tired. And even beyond that Satan has done everything he could to see that the film doesn't come out. I would be glad if Nanci and you would pray especially about this.

Thank you, Francis, for your impact on my life. In eternity it will be great for me to meet you face to face, along with other innumerable people who've written books that have shaped me. I anticipate saying "Thank you," then having a great discussion over the best dinner we've ever tasted!


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Speak the Truth in Love

The most quoted verse these days is not "For God so loved the world," but "Judge not." Unfortunately, we often fail to understand what this means.

In our own church, a Bible believing fellowship, years ago I spoke to a Sunday school class in which one of the couples stood up and shared that their unborn child had a serious disease and would not live long after birth. They said that the doctor had given them their options and they were meeting with him the next day and needed to make their decision about what they were going to do. The red flag was waving—almost certainly, one of the options (often the only one if it's a genetic defect, which it was) was abortion. The "options" are, give birth to a child who will almost certainly die, or take the life of the child before she is born.

After the class I watched as people briefly greeted this couple, nodded to them, likely said they'd be praying and went out the door. People seemed warm and friendly and caring. But no one talked more than a minute, which made it obvious they were not dealing with the question: what kind of options are we talking about?

I went to the couple, and we stayed afterward talking for nearly an hour. It turns out they were leaning toward abortion. In the absence of counsel to the contrary that would likely have been their direction. I explained the difference betweem God being allowed to take their child's life, and them choosing to take the child's life. They ended up having the child, who lived for a month in a family full of love, held by mom and dad and the other children. Proudly they showed us and their class the pictures of this precious child.

I am haunted by the fact that in our pro-life church, not one person in a Sunday School class of 100 took this couple aside. Surely someone realized the "options" probably included abortion. Likely, they didn't want to be judgmental or to make them feel guilty if they'd chosen abortion. But we owe it to people to tell them the truth, saturated with grace and kindness and empathy.

We all know that one of the ways we fail each other in the body of Christ is by our judgmental and self-righteous attitudes. What we don't seem to realize is how often we fail each other by looking the other way and not going to each other to give warning and wisdom and edification. (For example, a pastor who ends up leaving his wife and kids for his secretary, and dozens of church people, including leaders, saying, "I knew they were involved, or headed that way; I could just see it.") Well, it wasn't grace and non-judgmentalism that kept them from speaking up—it was indifference or cowardice or the lie that we are not our brother's keeper, that we don't have a responsibility to each other and to God.

Sometimes we assume people know that they are wrong. We think we're being nonjudgmental and gracious to them by not sitting down with them and kindly sharing what God says about sex and marriage. In fact, we are being neglectful or cowardly. We fall for the lie that sin can be in someone's true best interests. It can't be. It never is. Matthew 7 doesn't tell us not to help remove the splinters from our brother's eye. It tells us to remove the log from our own eye, so we can see more clearly to remove the splinter from our brother's eye.

We owe it to each other to do what Scripture commands: "Speak the truth in love." (Ephesians 4:15)


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A Tribute to My Mother

In honor of Mother's Day, I want to share a video about my mother, Lucille Alcorn. Feel free in your comments to share something about your own mother.




This year in October it will be twenty eight years since my mom died of cancer. Our Angela was only four months old then, so while Mom held Angie and fawned over her and loved her dearly, Angie wasn't old enough yet to understand what had happened. Sometimes I think how wonderful it will be one day for Angie and her grandmother to get to know each other.

The night Mom died, both Nanci and I wrote letters to our oldest daughter Karina, who was then two-and-a-half and who loved my Mom and connected with her in a way that defies words. (She spent every Monday with Mom at her place, the house I grew up in, and it was the highlight of Karina's week; Mom would read to her and play with her hour after hour, with complete delight.)

Here's what I wrote:

My dearest Karina,

I’ve just read your mother’s letter to you about Grandma Alcorn. It’s now 3:30 a.m., a funny time to be writing you. But I’ve been home from Grandpa’s just a little while.

As soon as I came home, about 3:00, I went right to your bedroom to wake you up. I thought you should know Grandma had died. You were so tired, and your eyes kept rolling back as I sat you up in my lap. Finally I knew you were awake, and I asked you, “Karina, do you know where Grandma Alcorn is right now?”

I was sure the answer would be “no.” Or maybe you’d say “in bed” since Grandma has been on her sickbed several months. But immediately, without any hesitation, you smiled and said, “Yes, Daddy—she’s in heaven.”

A wave of electricity went through me. You knew with absolute certainty. There wasn’t a hesitation or a doubt. Maybe Jesus whispered it to you in your sleep. Perhaps He let Grandma send a special message to you from heaven. But in any case, you knew exactly where Grandma was.

For several minutes I hugged you tight on your bed, and cried very hard. Everything your mom said in her letter about Grandma was true. You always had the most special times when you were with her.

I, too, ache because you had so little time together. Yet I marvel at how close you were in that time. If Grandma sees you as you grow up (I suspect the Lord will let her), she will be so proud. More than anything she would want you to love Jesus with all your heart, and to serve Him always.

Karina, you are God’s gift to me. I love you and your baby sister more than any father has ever loved his daughters. I pray that you and Angela will grow up to be as wonderful as your mom and your grandma.

As I write these things, tears are flowing down my face. How thankful I am to our loving God for giving me such a special family.

I love you, sweetheart.

Daddy

I’ll never forget the smile on Karina’s face at 3:00 a.m. that dark night when I woke her up to give her what you’d think would have been devastating news. But Karina immediately and accurately grasped something few people do—that she had every reason to be happy for her grandmother. She was not smiling because she didn’t understand. She was smiling precisely because she did understand.

She knew her grandmother was with the Person she was made for in the place she was made for. Karina literally believed—not just in her head but in her heart—everything we’d told her about heaven.

Though she would miss her grandmother greatly, she understood that this wasn’t the end of their relationship, but only an interruption. She knew her grandmother was in heaven, and that she would one day join her there.

Thank you for everything, Mom. I can't imagine having had a better Mom than you. I so look forward to seeing you again in that place where our gracious God will wipe away the tears from every eye.


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What to Pray for, beyond Physical Healing

My friend Barry Arnold pastors Cornerstone Church here in Gresham, Oregon. Last year he sent an email to his church regarding prayer. It’s worth quoting:

I think our prayers are unbalanced—in the direction of just physical needs. We can and should pray for people with infirmities—but it might be wise to change the emphasis of our prayers from physical healing alone to God accomplishing His purposes in and through afflictions.

Here’s a partial list of things the New Testament tells us to pray for:

Pray for people who give you a hard time (Matthew 5:43-44; Luke 6:28)

Pray for children (Matthew 19:13)

Pray for strength to endure difficult times (Luke 21:36)

Pray you will not fall into temptation (Luke 22:40)

Pray for all Christians (1 Thessalonians 5:25; Hebrews 13:18)

Pray that God's Kingdom will come and His will be done (Matthew 6:10)

Pray God will provide your daily needs (Matthew 6:11)

Pray for God's forgiveness as we forgive others (Matthew 6:12)

Pray we will not be led into temptation, but delivered from evil (Matthew 6:13)

Pray for boldness in proclaiming the gospel and for God to do miracles in people's lives (Acts 4:29-31)

Pray all the time, be alert, pray for fellow believers (Ephesians 6:18)

Pray for fearless teaching of the Word (Ephesians 6:20)

Pray to be filled with the knowledge of His will (Colossians 1:9)

Pray for open doors for the gospel (Colossians 4:3)

Pray that the Word of God may be glorified (2 Thessalonians 3:1)

Pray for deliverance from evil men (2 Thessalonians 3:2)

Pray for everyone, government leaders, peace, quiet, godliness, holiness (1 Timothy 2:1,2)

Pray for sinners to find life in Christ (1 John 5:16)

Ask God for wisdom (James 1:5)

It’s hard to break habits, and we’re very much in the habit of just asking God to cure people. Here’s a suggestion: When you pray for a physical need, also include at least one of the “spiritual needs” listed above.

In doing so we may begin to see physical infirmities the way God does, realizing that sometimes He heals, and many other times, for wise and holy reasons, He doesn’t.

This is Randy again: Thursday, May 7, is the National Day of Prayer, which emphasizes the need for personal repentance and intercession for America's leaders and their families. (For more information, go to www.ndptf.org) What could be more important and more satisfying—than to set aside time to confess, give thanks to the Lord, recognize His greatness, intercede for others, open His Word and seek after God?

God's greatest works, accomplished through prayer, are often invisible to us for now. (What's visible to us, except in rare moments of clarity, are not God's greatest works.) We pray now in faith, believing our prayers are making an eternal difference; we anticipate heaven, where we'll learn God's breathtaking answers to our prayers, including many that seemed unheard and ignored. There is no greater ministry, no higher calling, no better investment than prayer.


www.randyalcorn.blogspot.com
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May Giveaway of the Month: LifeChange Book Gift Set

The May giveaway is now closed. Check to see if your name was drawn as a winner.

This month, three randomly drawn winners will receive a book gift set of Randy’s books The Grace and Truth Paradox, The Purity Principle, and The Treasure Principle. They may be small, but each of these books has a powerful message.

The Grace and Truth Paradox is based on John 1:14, which boils down for us what it means to be Christlike. It means to be full of only two things: Grace and Truth. Instead of a dozen, this gives us just two balls to juggle. It's succinct, a two point checklist of Christlikeness. Everything we do can and should be measured by the test of grace and truth.

The Purity Principle includes practical guidelines to protect purity, for singles, for married couples, and for parents who wish to train their children in purity. These include controlling the television and internet, and offering alternatives for how to spend our time. It also includes confession, repentance and developing biblical accountability that doesn't just admit sin, but prevents it.

The Treasure Principle introduces readers to a revolution in material freedom and radical generosity that will change lives around the world. In contemporary, easy-to-understand language, Alcorn offers readers a six-step plan to finding the immediate pleasure and eternal rewards of the Treasure Principle. Once readers discover the liberating joy of giving, life will never look the same. And they won't want it to!

(The book gift set is also on sale this month from EPM for $18.00, 40% off the retail price of $29.97. The books come tied together with a raffia bow—it’s the perfect gift for a high school or college graduate.)

Here’s how to enter:

• Leave a comment on this post by Friday, May 22. (If you're reading this post on Amazon or elsewhere, visit http://randyalcorn.blogspot.com/2009/05/may-giveaway-of-month-lifechange-book.html to leave your comment.)


• In order to qualify for the giveaway, you must include your contact information (a blog, e-mail address, or website), otherwise we cannot contact you if your name is drawn. (If you do leave an e-mail address, to avoid having it picked up by spammers, I recommend encoding it, such as: youraddress AT yahoo DOT com) Need help posting a comment? Click here for step-by-step instructions. For further assistance, contact me at stephanie(at)epm.org


• The three randomly drawn winners will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday, May 26, so be sure to check back and see if you won.

If you're a previous winner, rather than entering, we'd encourage you to share this giveaway with friends who are not familiar with Randy's books and Eternal Perspective Ministries.

Stephanie Anderson
Promotions Director
Eternal Perspective Ministries
www.epm.org