CROSSWALK WITH AMBASSADORS ALLIANCE

Great news from Tony Miano and Ambassador's Alliance announcing a new outreach idea encouraging the use of the "Are You Ready" cross as an effective gospel witness tool for street evangelists everywhere.



If you are new to this blessing of a concept, check out how we at The Word Street Journal have benefitted from the use of this cross in our street ministry here in Ottawa, Canada.

A Cross, A Question and A Fool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a14vZyeihbw&feature=channel

Kim's First Cross Witness: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3tv18Zkopg&feature=channel

Cross Encounters of the Only Kind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2Az-dJJzMA&feature=channel

MAKING TIME

Life is busy. I'm busy. Everyone is busy.

But are we too busy to share the gospel to people beyond the four walls of our churches? It's all a matter of priority. For the Christian, sharing the gospel should be high up there on the things he or she should be doing on a regular basis, in whatever way is good. Even a little bit here and there is better than not at all.

Portrayed here are snippets from some of my open air outings utilizing one gospel sermon in various places in Ottawa over the past few weeks.

ORIGIN INTO SCHOOLS - OTTAWA

What a privilege and joy it was to be a part of this past week's "Species Into Schools" project here in Ottawa.

Our efforts were only a small portion of thousands upon thousands of books handed out on university campuses across the United States, Canada and abroad.



May the Lord be gracious in leading many readers to seek the truth and believe in the Word of God (instead of the word of man) both in regard to the truth of creation and, most especially, the truth of their much needed salvation through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

ORIGIN TEAM OTTAWA - UPDATE

Yesterday was day one for Kim and I for the Origin Into Schools project as we joined leader Chris Curry, Director of Living Waters Canada and his team from Life Christian Academy to hand out the Origin of Species books to students at the University of Ottawa. Glory to God, all went very well. My wife and I, and one other volunteer, are just heading out today to hand out the books on the campus of Carleton University, also in Ottawa.

Stay tuned as reports shall be following as soon as I can get them on the blog. Please pray for us.

SOMETHING FROM NOTHING?

In light of this week's Origin Into Schools project, below is a video clip from Living Waters that demonstrates the unintelligible, grasping-for-straws, position of those who do not believe in an all powerful, purposeful, designer and creator of the universe (God), yet at the same time, cannot align themselves with the argument that everything came from nothing. And that by pure chance.

This clip clearly demonstrates the Christian's need to put themselves in the business of proclaiming, defending and confirming the truth of God to those who say they do not believe when, indeed as the Bible points out in the book of Romans 1:18-21, they truly do believe, but choose to suppress that truth in order to justify their rebellion and sin.

Kim and I will be a part of the continent wide Origin Into Schools project at a local university here in Ottawa this week and are looking forward to sharing the gospel truth with those who are our future movers and shakers.

E.T., DARWIN AND THE POPE

The Lord has graciously given me a burden for the lost. And, I suppose because I used to be one, I have huge burden for even the sincerest of Roman Catholics. Not that they are more deserving of God's grace than others. It's just that I can easily relate with them.

The Lord opened my heart to the truth of the gospel ten years ago. That changed everything for me. Over the years my concern has increased for those who adhere to what the Vatican has self-proclaimed to be "The Mother Church".

So when I come across news articles relating to what comes out of the Vatican these days, I pay close attention. Wednesday's news story from the Associated Press got my attention...and ire.

The news article headlines the latest from Rome with : "The Vatican looks to heavens for signs of alien life".

The story reports that "the Vatican has called in experts to study the possiblility of extraterrestrial alien life and its implication for the Catholic Church.

"Thirty scientists, including non-Catholics, from the U.S., France, Britain, Switzerland, Italy and Chile, attended the conference, called to explore among other issues 'whether sentient life forms exist on other worlds'.

"Earlier this year, the Vatican also sponsored a conference on evolution to mark the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's 'The Origin of Species'."

Let me say first that I do not believe there is anything wrong with people wondering if extraterrestial aliens exist in unknown parts of the universe. We cannot be absolutely certain unless we see them or true signs of them. Only God knows for sure because if they do exist, it's because He would have created them.

I do wonder, however, why the Vatican is so concerned about the question that they would sponsor a conference bringing in scientists from all over the world to study the possibility of aliens existing and what the implications would be for the Catholic Church if they did exist.

Implications for the Catholic Church?? What about the whole world?

But even if it were discovered that aliens do exist, (and that would be an amazing discovery) how would that in any way change man's need for salvation? How would that change man's need to be born again? How would that change man's need to repent of their sins and trust in the Savior?

How would the existence of aliens change man's need for the unchangeable gospel of Jesus Christ and adherence to it?

Then again, the Catholic Church does preach a different gospel . So it should come as no surprise that they would spend all that money, time and energy on the unknown as they have in past times spent money, time and energy rejecting what had previously been known as truth from the Word of God until, that is, Charles Darwin happened along.

Last May the Vatican sponsored, yet, another conference to mark, celebrate and support the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution as published in "The Origin of Species". The Vatican has always been open about its acceptance of Darwin's theory being a plausible one right from the 'Big Bang' on.

By doing so, however, the Vatican openly rejects the literal Genesis account of creation, an account given directly to man by God through His Holy Word, the Bible. The Vatican has traded the truth of God's Word for a lie. A lie conceived by a mere man, a self proclaimed atheist, no less.

Then what of the gospel? If the Vatican chooses to teach heretical theories over the true Word of God regarding the Genesis account of creation, how can they be trusted to truthfully teach the saving gospel of Jesus Christ to their flock?

I have witnessed to a myriad of catholics over the years. And like I used to, they offer a great array of means by which they will make it into Heaven.

And not once did I ever hear that it would be solely by the grace of God through the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross, His death and His resurrection. No talk of the need to be born again. No talk of repentance and faith in Christ alone.

Their faith is based upon their own goodness through charitable works, religious rituals and tradtions, being free of 'mortal' sins, the interceding of the Virgin Mary, saints and, most of all, the false security in the unbiblical myth of Purgatory.

And now, as the Pope is busy trying to find aliens in space, the Mother Ship continues to distract and alienate their followers further from the truth of God's Word and, subsequently, God Himself. That has eternal consequences.

Neither adhering to becoming you, from goo, by way of the zoo or by actually finding E.T. in a distant galaxy, negates the fact that people here on earth need to hear the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ just as it is written the the Holy Word of God - the Bible!

That is why genuine Christians must always to be ready to lovingly, compassionately share the true gospel of Jesus to Roman Catholics. We must warn them that they cannot assume that just because they have been baptized into catholicism or that they faithfully practice their religion, that they are destined for Heaven.

Roman Catholics are very sincere people for the most part. But from my experience with them, I have found that they have almost no knowledge of the Bible. Most don't read it at all. They just get their weekly morsel of Scripture at their mass, go through their man-made rituals, traditions and prayers and that's that until the following week.

Please, pray that the Lord would bless you with opportunities to share the gospel truth with those of the Roman Catholic faith be they friend or family. With love and gentleness, reach out to those whom you know who are under the Pope and not under grace.

And should it be that some are drawn by God to true repentance and faith in Christ, they can later decide for themselves if everything else from Darwin to E.T. is really all that important afterall.

BAD NEWS FIRST PLEASE

HT: diligentile

BACKGROUND TO WASHER'S SHOCKING YOUTH MESSAGE

In this short interview, Paul Washer gives backstage information that compelled him to preach the way he did in what has become one of the most controversial, blunt and, therefore, powerful gospel presentations to an audience of 5000 at a youth conference a few years ago.

It has become known all over as "The Shocking Youth Message". If you are one who has yet to see it, then I highly reccommend you take the time to watch it.

Here is the background story:


And here is the classic sermon:



HT: I'll Be Honest

85 MILLION DOLLAR HEIST FROM EVANGELISTS' CAR

Ottawa Police are not initiating a massive search for a daring thief who, during the dark of night, broke into the car of street evangelists Paul and Kim Latour and made off with the hefty sum of $85 million cash, in 1 million dollar denominations, that the Latours secretly kept in the glove compartment of their car.

The couple were giddy and absolutely delighted when they discovered what had been stolen. They are hoping that when the thief discovers what he had taken were actually Christian gospel tracts, that he would read one of them.

And they hope when he got to the part that asks if he had ever stolen anything, that he would have "a lightbulb moment" and be convicted.

Following that, they pray that he would read on to find out how he can escape the wrath of God for doing such a dastardly deed (among the millions of his others) and be saved.

Though there were other material items the culprit could have taken (like a huge open tray of 1 and 2 dollar coins - real money - that the Latours use for parking downtown on their "fishing excursions") nothing else was stolen.

The Ottawa Police officer who took the report could not contain his laughter when he was told what the thief took. He said "The guy must have thought he hit the mother lode, and took off as fast as he could without bothering to search for anything else that might have been of value to him."

Laughter subsided, the victims are now praying for the thief that he would come to repentance and faith in Christ, and then unselfishly hand out the remaining million dollar bills to 84 of his closest friends.

They noted, saying: "God has a wonderful sense of humor!"