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                                                            I was a stranger and you took me in. -- Matthew 25:35

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Life-defining encounters with god: Peter &
Life-Defining Encounters with God: Peter & Service

In the third and final installment of this series, Rev. Gareth G. Morris, pastor of the International Baptist Church of Prague, says  the apostle's post-resurrection meeting with Jesus defined the meaning of service for the former fisherman and us as well. Read more.

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Plastic shackles

A book for our times says our preoccupation with worldly things is at the root of our debt, delinquency and deficits. The solution is spiritual, and the 'dfree' movement is the key to our liberation.


'I find that enslavement is the only adequate word to express the dire, life-draining, debilitating condition in which we find ourselves today.'  Read more.

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Life-Defining encounters with God: Esther & Purpose

In the second installment of a three-part series, Rev. Gareth G. Morris, pastor of the International Baptist Church of Prague, says the courageous queen exemplifies our purpose – to serve, praise and glorify God. Read more.

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Show me the money

an important book argues the prosperity gospel is a dangerous movement with damning consequences for believers. Some of the biggest names in televangelism and mega-churchland have not only distorted the Word, the writers claim, often they have totally ignored Jesus and treated the Cross like an ATM machine. Read more.

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Life-Defining encounters with God: Jacob & identity

In this first installment of a three-part series, Rev. Gareth G. Morris, pastor of the International Baptist Church of Prague, says Jacob's struggle with God defined his identity – and the nature of our relationship to the Creator. Parts two and three will address how meetings with God defined other biblical characters' purpose and service. Read more.

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The not-so-good Samaritans
When Christians stop playing church and finally get serious about their faith, that's when Satan gets busy. Sometimes he sends them a Samaritan.  Read more.

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Like father
or
like son?
King Ahaz was rotten to the core, yet his son Hezekiah was one of the godliest of Israel's monarchs. You probably think you take after the kid, right? Read more.
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Revelation, Revolutions, and the Tyrannical New World Order

Rapture theology is not only unbiblical, it's anti-biblical, says Richard T. Hughes, distinguished professor of religion and director of the Sider Institute for Anabaptist, Pietist and Wesleyan Studies at Messiah College. Rapture theologians focus on hate and violence inspired by the "new world order," while ignoring the biblical vision of "a new heaven and a new earth" that brings self-giving love, comfort and enduring peace. Read more.



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Money can't buy me love
It won't buy godliness with contentment either. They, on the other hand, add up to great gain. Read more.

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Garbage In, Garbage Out
You can't say Paul didn't warn us: If you feed your head trash, you will be a trashy person. Read more.

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His Global Legacy

He freed Americans from the bondage of hatred, but King's message was about far more than civil rights in just one country. It was about peace and justice worldwide, says Joyce M. Davis, president of the World Affairs Council of Harrisburg, Pa. Read more.

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O, ye, of many faiths

The 112th Congress, like the U.S. public, is majority Protestant and about a quarter Catholic. And Baptists and Methodists are the largest Protestant denominations, as they are in the country as a whole. A faith-by-faith (or no-faith) breakdown of the new Congress is here. So is this a Christian nation, then? No way, says the Constitution. But U.S. voters are telling us something else altogether, according to this analysis.

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O-u-t  o-f  c-o-n-t-r-o-l
 

Paul said self-control was key to living a godly life. Peter said Satan devours those who lack that quality. What would they say of a world that promotes total lack of restraint? Read more.

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Sinner, where are you?

God asked Adam where he was as the first man hid in the garden. It wasn't his physical location He was inquiring about. Were He to ask about your walk, what could you say? Read more.

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Does the Christian Right distort the faith and threaten the nation's spiritual core?
It certainly does, and its leaders must be called on it, says Richard T. Hughes, Distinguished Professor of Religion at Messiah College. Links to a four-part series are available here.

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Do we feel good when we read the Good Book?
      Do we feel anything at all? King Josiah certainly did. He was stunned when he first encountered Scripture ... then he went into action. Read about it.                                                                                             

                                                                                                                          

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We may question God's love when things go wrong. But the Rev. Gareth G. Morris, pastor of the International Church of Prague, counsels against that. He says Romans 8:28-39 is a faith framework in which we can view the circumstances of our lives -- and find that nothing can separate us from His love. Read his sermon.

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The gospel of (Irma) Thomas

A light-hearted look at a “hymn” whose message is that there's no time like now to get right with the Lord. Read on.

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               Just where did Philip disappear to?

It seemed to be the Evangelist's fate to be whisked one place or another by the Lord, but unlike many of us, he spread the good news wherever he went. Read more.

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The eye of God

    If the Lord knows the number of hairs on your head (not mention the exact number of your days), surely He is not speaking of location when He asks, 'Where are you?' Here's why.

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      He healed my leprosy  ... that I was sick and unclean did not cause Him to turn away when I called out, 'Master, have mercy on me.' Read why.


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Doeseveryone know more about religion than evangelicals do?

Atheists, agnostics, Jews and Mormons seem to know more than evangelicals about the world's religions, according to the results of a recent quiz by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. You can take it here. The 15-question test is pretty simple, really, so Nicholas D. Kristof of The New York Times devised a slightly shorter one that is a bit more of a head-scratcher. Take it here.

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       Is there more to Esther than its filmic qualities?    Time and again, Hollywood has been drawn to the story of the beautiful Esther, with its sex and violence and intrigue. This Old Testament book is clearly a good yarn, but does it have something meaningful to say to today's Christians?

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    How would Jesus treat America's 'stranger'—the Muslim? Would He love him and offer him living water?  

Richard T. Hughes, Distinguished Professor of Religion, Messiah College, and author of 'Christian America and the Kingdom of God', finds that almost 600 years before the birth of Islam, Jesus had quite a bit to say about 'strangers.'

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    Altar call. Have a little talk with Jesus, wherever, whenever. It'll make things alright.

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  The world cries out . . .

Compounding the tragic loss of life on Sept. 11, 2001, was the gross abuse and misuse of religion to justify murder, says Joyce M. Davis, author of Martyrs: Innocence, Vengeance and Despair in the Middle East.

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What a Christian community can offer a polarized society.   The goal should never be political victory but the preservation of Christian mission and witness. There is a more excellent way to deal with the issues that divide us, the Right Reverend Nathan D. Baxter writes.
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Never waste serious adversity
Bad things happen to good people for good reason: God wants it to. The question is, how are you going to respond when adversity occurs?
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The relevance of then to now
Oh, please, spare me the talk about patrimony and heritage and how it used to be. What's God done for me lately?
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Half-hearted devotion is no sacrifice at all      

God condemned any sacrifice with a blemish or defect. He wanted your best at the altar. Why would He be satisfied with less than your all in your devotions and study of the Scriptures? Read more about your devotion.

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What's your credit score with God?

American consumers, as a group, have the lowest credit rating in decades, according to Credit.com, which keeps tabs on the ability of people to get financing. Apparently, some 70 million of us are now rated at 650 or below.

Thumb your nose, if you like, if you're not in that category. But what about on Judgment Day? How's your credit with the Almighty? Read more about how you rate with God.


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Yes, but do you really believe?

  “When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.” – Matthew 28:17

Here we have the story of the disciples who accompanied Jesus for the three-plus years of His ministry, who heard Him give sermon after sermon, saw Him perform one miracle after another and knew He said he was the Son of God. Yet, seemingly no one was more astonished than they when He arose from the tomb! How solid is your belief?

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GOD = DEL       

Think it's hard to erase the past and start over? Not really. You can become a new creature in Christ. Read how, here.

 

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WHAT WOULD PAUL DO?
If he were living today, he'd probably have a  web site like this one. His mission was to encourage everyone with the Good News, and so is ours. This site is intended for the enlightened seeker, whether you are in a church now, lost contact with a church over the years or have never stepped inside one. You're home now. Welcome. To encourage or to excoriate us, contact rwgoodman at StrangersHomeMinistries@gmail.com. 

            

 
                                                                                                    

 

 


Therefore love the stranger, for you were strangers in Egypt. -- Deuteronomy 10:19
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