I'm excited to advance

This afternoon I leave for the third Heart of a Warrior Advance. It will be at Big Sandy Camp in McGregor, Minn. I'm excited to see how the Holy Spirit moves this weekend; I have never attended an Advance before.

Becoming a Christian Heritage Party candidate

In this political season, it seems probable that somewhere a candidate would be called to run based on the prompting of God. That's definitely the case. . .with a fringe party in Canada. According to The Lindsay Post, Dave Switzer is slated to run a modest campaign that will leave the result in God's hands:

'There wasn't anyone forthcoming to run,' he said. 'God spoke to my heart that he wanted me as a candidate for the Christian Heritage Party.'

Switzer explained the four main issues he will deal with are abortion, climate change, families and gay marriage.

20% of Americans have heard the voice of God

USA Today recently ran a front-page story on survey findings about Americans' religious beliefs and practices.

The survey, conducted by the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University, found that:

• 55% of adults say that they have been protected from harm by a guardian angel
• 45% of adults felt called by God to do something
• 23% of adults witnessed or experienced a miraculous, physical healing
• 20% of adults have heard the voice of God.

The story has been very popular on USA Today's Web site; readers have posted nearly 900 comments so far.

God does not have a political party

An editorial in The Tennessean on Aug. 31 by Carol Swain, Ph.D., a professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University, inspired a lot of reader comments. The topic? The role of divine wisdom in politics.

A life of adventure

Lynn Boleware has had an adventurous life. He's been a stock car driver, bull rider, a bounty hunter and a firefighter. But his latest adventure -- as rabbi of the Beit Lechem Congregation, a Messianic Jewish community -- has its roots in hearing God's voice in his early teens:

'I grew up in the Methodist church,' said Boleware. 'But at about age 12 or 13, I started asking questions. I saw a news story on television about Israel, and I believe God spoke to my heart, telling me that the people I saw on TV were my people. I didn't understand it at the time, but now it's quite clear to me.' (Madison County Herald)

Messianic Jews accept Jesus, or "Y'shua," as the Messiah. "Y'shua is the Aramaic name for Jesus, which translated, means 'God is my salvation,'" explained Boleware.

Music with a saving message

The Lufkin Daily News recently ran a story about Clayton Dyess, a guitar-playing, Louisiana-based gospel singer who plays his songs in parking lots.

Several times Dyess' music and God's message have saved someone's life:

• 'One time I was playing at a Wal-Mart in Center and a woman went in the store to buy pills to kill herself,' he said. 'She came up to me and said that she heard my music and that God spoke to her and saved her right there.'
• Another time Dyess was playing by the river in Natchitoches on a rainy night, with barely anyone listening. Suddenly he heard a splash and saw a man that had jumped into the water to kill himself. Dyess said that the man swam to safety because his message spoke to him and he wanted to be saved. The man ended up joining him on stage and singing in the rain.
• Another time, a man passed Dyess on his way to buy alcohol to fuel his depression. Dyess said soon after, the man came up to him, gave him his alcohol and turned his life over to God.

Dyess gives away his CDs for free to spread God's message as far as he can.

Guiding the lives of our sons

A father's role in his son's life cannot be overestimated. Sons look to their fathers as role models, and every child's first image of what God is like scaringly reflects his relationship with his father.

I'm trying to be the best role model for my son, and it's very helpful to have other men involved in that journey. That's why the men in my Heart of a Warrior group and our sons are getting together for breakfast tomorrow. Hopefully this will be a regular event, so we can guide and lift up our sons to the Lord.

A job. . .just in time

I have written in the past about how God guides my career. Well, a friend of mine from church recently experienced God's hand in his work life as well! He had a feeling that he was going to be let go from his job, and he indeed was let go last Wednesday. He and his family were very sad and scared. Then he had a job interview on Thursday, was offered a contract position on Friday, and the new company wants him to start on Monday!

God's provision was definitely evident in this situation.

Refuting the lies

I have let the lies that my stepdad told me growing up ("I'm ugly", "I don't belong", and more) toxify my life for too long. His lies have stayed in my subconscious, and ruin my relationships and self-esteem because I have not dealt with them.

I now have started finally refuting my stepdad's lies by writing out each lie, and then writing out the respective truth. I have found myself literally sick at times when writing out the truth (e.g., "I'm lovable"). There's an aspect of my brain not being able to accept the truth after so many years of lies, but I'm sure that the evil one wants to keep me down as well. I -- and God's truth -- will persist in spite of the resistance.

Change comes with a cost

I just finished watching the movie "Luther". It's really quite an interesting story. I remembered hearing the story of Martin Luther from confirmation class at my church, but I guess that I didn't recall hearing about all the bloodshed that took place.

In the movie, Luther points out that change comes with a cost. He made a huge change by providing the New Testament to people in their own language -- German. And the establishment, which did not want things to change, made sure that there was a cost.

Surviving Tropical Storm Fay

Because of Tropical Storm Fay, which contributed to 11 deaths in Florida, one in Georgia and one in Alabama and caused millions of dollars worth of damage, affected areas have been declared major disaster areas by President Bush.

Beyond the flood of rain, there also have been a flood of prayers. Florida Today looks at how pastors have been addressing the devastation in their sermons. One example was from Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church:

Pastor Harvey Riley spoke of patience through adverse times. Many shouted praises to God and stood as Riley talked about waiting on God.

'This week we anticipated that the rain would stop,' Riley preached. 'But God let it go on. Then God spoke to Fay and told her to move on. We just have to remember to be patient.'

Let's pray that some FEMA funds become available to those affected by Tropical Storm Fay.

God's hand in leading Katrina evacuees out of New Orleans

The Austin American-Statesman ran a really cool article on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina about evacuees who trusted God's plan to lead them to Austin. Their stories are really fascinating -- particularly Nicole Marie Barriere's story. She said that God spoke to her: "Leave, because I'm about to destroy the city."

Celebrating 10 years of the LifeLight Music Festival

For a decade, Christian music fans have been flocking to Sioux Falls, S.D., to celebrate Christ at the LifeLight Music Festival. The festival's origins lie in a mission trip to Mexico taken by founders Alan and Vicki Greene:

'It really started because my wife and I went on a missions trip with a group of other people from here. We went down to Mexico and God spoke to us.' (KELO-TV)

Five years ago, the Greenes quit their jobs to take on LifeLight full time, and now their mission has evolved to more than the festival. They have organized mission trips, brought food to countries in Africa, and organized student-led clubs in high schools and middle schools.