activated july 2004

8/14/2019 Activated July 2004

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CHANGE YOUR LIFE. CHANGE YOUR WORLD.

7 WAYS TO FINDGODS BESTIts easier than you think

THE ROAD TO HAPPINESSTake the next right turn

666 WATCHWhere is the new technology

leading us?


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Unless otherwise indicated, all

Scripture quotations inActivated are

from the New King James Version of

the Bible 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc.

When other versions are quoted,

some typographical changes have

been made for the sake of clarity and

uniformity.

VOL 5 ISSUE 7July 2004

EDITORKeith Phillips

DESIGNGiselle LeFavre

ILLUSTRATIONSDoug Calder

PRODUCTIONFrancisco Lopez

activated CHANGE YOUR LIFECHANGE YOUR WOPERSONALLY SPEAKING

Some years ago, after a series of mistakes leftme exasperated and discouraged, I pleaded withGod to turn me into a robot, programmed to alwado what He knew was best. You know that deepdown I want nothing more than to do whats righand to please You, but my wrong decisions andharebrained ideas keep getting in the way! CantYou reprogram me to always make the right choiand do the right thing? Think how much better ofYour world would be!

Thats really not the solution, He replied. Noonly would that take the challenge out of life, butwould put a damper on our relationship. Becausyou would no longer need to come to Me forguidance, you would stop relying on Me. You wostop appreciating Me, and before long you wouldstop loving Me. No, I think wed better leave youthe way I made youbut Ill tell you what I willdoInstead of programming you with all the answersall at once, I will give them to you one by one,whenever you bring a matter to Me in prayer.

It wasnt really a new offer at all, of course, andit wasnt exclusively for me. He makes the sameoffer to you, summed up in these verses from theBible: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and le

not on your own understanding; in all your waysacknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths(Proverbs 3:56).

The arrangement isnt perfect, because itinvolves imperfect people like you and meitdepends on us remembering to stop and ask Himfor guidance and then having the faith, yieldedne

humility, and whatever else it may take to followthrough and do what He shows usbut Im sureyoull find, as I have, that it beats trying to figurethings out yourself!

Keith Phillips

For the Activated family

2 activated VOL 5, IS


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WHEN I MET JESUS, LIFE BECAME RATHER LIKE A BIKE RID

It was a tandem bike; I rode in the front and steered, andJesus was in the rear seat, helping to pedal.

I dont remember just when it happened, but Jesus sug-gested we change places. Life hasnt been the same since.Jesus makes the ride so exciting!

When I had control, I knew the way. It was safe and pre-dictable, but rather boringalways the shortest distancebetween two points. But when Jesus got in the drivers seatHe knew delightful long cuts up mountain roads and doagain at breakneck speeds. It was all I could do to hold on!

I didnt want to question His judgment, but once Icouldnt help myself. Dont You think we should slow dow

just a little? Im scared. He turned and smiled and touchemy hand and said, Its okay. Pedal.

Sometimes I got worried and anxious and asked, Wherare You taking me?

d to trust. I forgot my boring life andhe adventure.

took me to meet people with gifts thadedgifts of love, healing, acceptanc. They gave me their gifts to take ony journeyour journey, my Lordsand mineand we were off again. Hsaid, Give the gifts away. So I did, tother people we met. But the stran

est thing happened. I found that thmore of those things I gave away, thmore I had for myself and to give tother people we met along the way

And still our load was light.At first I didnt trust Jesus to be in

control of my life. I thought He woureck it. But He knows the bikes capa

ilities and limits, and all sorts of trickknows how to take sharp corners atspeeds, make the bike jump to clea

our way, and He can even make it flroad disappears beneath us.ng to not worry or want to get backto relax and enjoy the view, the cool

breeze on my face, and the delightful company of my con-stant companion, Jesus.

I still get tired sometimes because it is a long, hard ride,but Jesus just smiles and says, Pedal.

AUTHOR UNKNOW

activated VOL 5, ISSUE 7


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HOW SHOULD CHRISTIANS GO ABOUT

MAKING DECISIONS? When were facedwith having to make a decision, whatare we trying to find?The will of God!So the real question is this: How do wefind the will of God?

A good Scripture on the subject isfound in Romans chapter 12, verses 1and 2: I beseech you therefore, breth-ren, by the mercies of God, that you

mind, that you may prove what is thatgood and acceptable and perfect will ofGod.

So what is the most importantrequirement in finding Gods will?Having no will of your own! Surrender

your will, your body, and your mindto the Lord. Everybody has free will,of course, but as Christians weresupposed to have already chosen tosurrender our will to Jesus Christ. Weresupposed to let Him make the deci-sions. Here is one of my favorite littlepoems on the subject:

Some people say, Yes, my will issurrendered to God. I have yielded mlife to the Lord, I am trusting the Lorbut I still havent been able to find H

will. Im still confused. I cant evenunderstand the problem, much less answer! Its a dilemma most of us faat some time in our lives.

So how do you find the will of GodWhat does He require, accordingto the Scripture in Romans chapter

12?Yield your mind, body, and willGod. Then youll know! Youll soon fiout, because then youre in a positiofor God to show youand Hewiprobably through one or more othe following:

Seven waysto find Gods best

BY DAVID

BRANDT BERG

He knows, He loves, He cares;

Nothing His truth can dim!

If youre

letting

Him do the

choosing,

Hes going to

choose that

which is best

for you, that

which will

make you

happiest in

the long run.



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for me! Thatsthe answer! Orperhaps youvebeen praying abouta certain situation whenthe Lord reminded you of

a verse or passage that wasexactly the answer you needed.It was so loud and clear that Godcouldnt have spoken any more emphat-ically if Hed yelled it out! That is thevoice of His Word, speaking through Histried-and-proven written Word. It mayhave been originally given for some-body thousands of years ago, and yet, allof a sudden, it speaks to you personally.

is the voice of the Worda specificverse, phrase or passage from the Bible,

which speaks to you personally.

3. DIRECT

REVELATION

What do you think wouldbe the third surest indica-tion of the will of God?A

direct revelation: a prophecy, dream,vision, or voice.

For example, when God speaks toyou in prophecy, it may come in theform of one or more Bible verses orfresh new words not found in the Bible.

When I ask God for an answer to a prob-lem, I have found that He usually givesme a Scripturean answer that Hesalready given somewhere in the Bible.

Be sure that any direct revelation you

receive does not contradict the Word ofGod. You have to measure your revela-tion against the Word. Do not believeevery spirit, but test the spirits, whetherthey are of God; because many falseprophets have gone out into the world(1 John 4:1). Make sure it is according toHis Word!

1. THE WORD

The first place we lookfor the will of God is in the

Word of God, the Bible. Thisis the known, sure, absolute,

revealed will of God. Theres no doubt

about it. This is it! If God never tells youanother thing than what He has already

written, if you operate according to theBible, youll get along great!

If you never have a revelation, ifyou never hear a heavenly voice, if younever receive a prophecy, if you neverhave the gifts of knowledge or wisdomor discernment or healing or performmiracles, if youll just operate accord-ing to the Word of God, youll accom-plish a whole lotand eventually youllprobably receive many of these spiri-tual gifts as well!

Some people dont study their Biblesas they should. Theyve got to have theanswers spoon-fed to them. They dontknow how to dig them out for them-selves. Some things youve got to workfor! Be diligent to present yourselfapproved to God, a worker who does

not need to be ashamed, rightly divid-ing the Word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

2. THE VOICE OF THE

WORD

The second way to knowGods will is by the voiceof His Word. God speaks

not only through His Word, but Hespeaks through the voice of His Word.The Psalmist says, Bless the Lord, you

His angels, who excel in strength, whodo His Word, heeding the voice of His

Word (Psalm 103:20).Have you ever been reading a pas-

sage of Scripture when all of asudden a verse or phrase or even asingle word comes alive and hits

you between the eyes? Thats



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4. GODLY COUNSEL

Fourth on the list is godlycounselors. In the multitudeof counselors there is safety(Proverbs 11:14). Without

counsel purposes are disap-pointed: but in the multitude of counsel-ors they are established(Proverbs 15:22,KJV). Godly counselors are people whonot only believe the Bible, but who arepracticing it the way they ought to. Theyare not only hearers of the Word, butdoers also (James 1:22).

A godly counselor is someone wholoves the Lord, and whose life shows thegood fruit of living close to Him (Mat-thew 7:1520). If I wanted to learn how toplay the piano, I wouldnt go to businesscollege; Id go to a pianist who knowshow to play well. If I wanted to learnhow to cook, I wouldnt go to a computertechnician, but to somebody who knowshow to cook, whose meals Ive enjoyed.So godly counselors are people that youcan trust because they bear good spiri-tual fruit in their own lives.

5. OPEN AND CLOSED

DOORS

The fifth way to determinethe will of God is through cir-cumstances and conditions.These are generally a poor

means of finding the will of God, butsometimes they are an indication. Somepeople call finding Gods will throughcircumstances open and closed doors

(1 Corinthians 16:9; 2 Corinthians 2:12;Revelation 3:78).

For example, many years ago theboard of my church decided that myfamily and I could not go to a certaincountry as missionaries, and they gaveseveral reasons: The country that I

wished to go to was closed to any newmissionaries, there were severe foodshortages there, and I had been unable

to raise our fares. I looked at all thoseclosed doors and agreed that thatcountry wasnt the place for us to go.Then right about that time, the Lordopened the door to another place of s

vice where there were millions of peopwho needed to hear the Gospel!

Open and closed doors: Which waydoes God seem to be leading? Where d

you have open doors of service? Wherhave you got a possibility of a job? In

which direction does it seem that Godproviding the way and the means? Thaone way to find out the will of Godtcircumstances and conditions, the opand closed doors.

6. BURDENS

(THE WITNESS OF

THE SPIRIT)

That leads us to numbersix: the witness of the Spirit

a certain intuitive conviction that giveyou faith. You just know that a certaincourse of action is the will of God! TheLord may not tell you in an audible vo

or give you a visible sign, but you knofrom that still, small voice in your hea(1 Kings 19:12), that inner conviction.Some people refer to this as burdens

I dont like to go by feelings, becaussometimes feelings can be wrong. Thecan be the wrong feelings from the

wrong spirit! Nevertheless, some feelinare put there by the Lord, as one indiction of His will for you. The Spirit of Gspeaks to your heart about a decision

you face, and gives you an inner convtion about what God wants you to do.

Sometimes the witness of the Spmay be a warning not todo certain thingthatits not Gods will. Yourheart or spirit hears avoice saying, Stop,dont do that! Watchout! The Holy



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Spirit doesnt even have to use words,but you get the message!

So thats the sixth way to find Godswill: the witness of the Spirit.

7. FLEECESAnd finally, what is the

seventh way to know the willof God? Sometimes you canask for a specific sign. This we

call a fleece, a term taken from the storyof Gideon in the Old Testament (Judges6:3640). Gideon wanted to know theLords will about a matter, so he spreadout a fleece of wool on the ground oneevening and said, Now Lord, if tomor-

row morning the fleece is wet from thedew and the ground all around it is dry,then I will know that You have been talk-ing to me and Im supposed to do such-and-such. But even when the Lord metthat condition, Gideon still wasnt sure,so he asked the Lord to do the reverse.Now Lord, tomorrow if the fleece is dryand the ground is wet, Ill believe that

You want me to do such-and-such

and the Lord did it! So if you resort tofleeces, check and double check.I like to get a sign from the Lord, a

confirmation that Im on the right track,and thats one way. Ill ask for a sign, Illput out a fleece by asking God to meetcertain conditions.

God doesnt necessarily follow anyparticular order when revealing His willthrough these means. He may speak to

you through a prophecy first, and then

you may confirm that prophecy by theWord. Or He may speak to you throughthe voice of His Word, and then yousearch other Scriptures and see what theLord generally has to say about thesubject. We cant put God in a boxand say Hes got to speak to us inthis or that way, or in this or thatorder. But these are ways we

know He works, not only from

our own experience, but also fromwhat He has said in His written Word.

CONCLUSION

So how do you find the will of God?

Surrender your all to Him and do notbe conformed to this worldor worldly

ways of doing thingsbut be trans-formed by the renewing of your mind,that you may provethere will be nodoubt!what is that good and accept-able and perfect will of God.

Sometimes to find out what Godswill is, we have to first find what it isnt.If, after trying all these ways, you stillarent sure you have found the will of

God, take the first step in the directionyou thinkHe is leading you. A boat hasto be in motion before the rudder cantake effect. Take one step, then stop andask God to confirm that youre going theright direction. Then if the answers notclear or youre still not sure, give it sometime. God may be waiting for certaincircumstances to be right before He canshow you any more than He has.

In the meantime, keep busy for Godright where you are. You dont find Godswill by just sitting around doing nothing.I once knew someone who did that. Hesaid that he had been called by God tobe a missionary, but he had since beensitting around, doing little or nothing,for many months. He said he was wait-ing on the Lord (Psalm 130:5).

Well, while this man was wait-ing on God to do something

to get him started, God waswaiting on him to get busy!While youre waiting for Godto reveal His will, keep busydoing the things you knowHe wants youto do: Love and praise Him for His good-ness, study His Word, and be a blessingto others in your present situation.

May God help us all to not only findHis will, but to do it!



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LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,

I have the deal of a lifetime for you!I started off in Construction and nowIve also moved into Recycling andRepair. My name is Jesus and Im thebest in the business. Heres My free trialoffer: I will fix whatever you most want

mended! But before you answer tooquickly, listen to this: I mean anything!Go a few steps beyond thinking of abroken television or your car problems.Think big!Your health, your life, yourbroken heart, any impossible situation

youre caught inanything!Of course, its hard for you to believe

My claims if you dont know for surethat Im on the level, that Im real andready to back up everything I say. SoIm also making you another free trialoffer: Test Me! You can put Me in a testtube and see if I work! And you are thetest tube! Just ask Me to come into yourlife and change things for the better. IfI cant do it, then you can forget aboutMe and this offer. But if I come throughfor you, if I prove to you personally thatIm real, think of what you will havegained!

And what do I want from you inreturn? The only thing I want from youis your love. I want for you to chooseMe to solve your problems before youchoose any other solution, and Ill get

you to feel like that by actually fixingeach problem you bring to Me. This isnot a promise for the future, althoughI have lots of those as well. This is for

The Deal

of a LifetimeA MESSAGE FROM JESUS

Ask Me to prove Im

real, ... that I will

do all the things

I say I can do, and

then stand back

and watch Me come

through for you!

8 activatedVOL 5, IS


9/16

with the results, then I would ask onesmall favor of you: Pass this offer onto someone else, or to as many as you

will. Word-of-mouth advertising fromsatisfied customer is the best kind, anthats what I like. Now thats asking nmore than anyone would when theygiven you a good deal on something provided good reliable service. And li

other good businesses, each time yourefer someone to Me by giving themthis offer, Ill mark it up to your creditand Ill repay you for it. Hows that fodeal? You cant lose!

Ive been around a long time and,believe it or not, this dynamite offer ithe same one Ive always offered. Im

just stepping up My advertising a littlto keep up with the changing times.

Time is short and times are changingDo yourself a favor and try it. Youll bglad you did. And so will whoever els

you tell about this offer, if theyll try itoo. Dont forget, this offer is only theintroduction. Theres a lot moreandmean a lot more! And its all for you a

your good! First try this, and then Illshow you some more.

So, ask Me to come into your life afix whatever is broken. Ill move in wi

a complete program of repair, restoration, and even some new improve-ments if you want them. I have a whonew range of possibilities for you tochoose from. Is that a good deal? Itsthe best! Try it! Do it now and lets getstarted! Just tell Me right now, Jesus,its a deal! Ill take Your offer. Comein and let me see what You can do. IfIm satisfied with the results, Ill referothers to You!

With love, your heavenly repairman,

Jesus

This and other messages are avail-able in tract form. Write one of theActivated addresses listed on page2, or visit the Familys Web site:[email protected].

right now, and for each and every timeyou put Me to the test. I mean it! Doesit sound too good to be true? I said itsthe deal of a lifetime! Youll never get abetter offer than thisand you haventeven heard all of it yet!

What did you do to deserve allthis?Nothing! When youre in love

with someone, they dont have to doanything to get your favor; you wantto do things for them. And thats why I

want to do this for you, because I loveyou! I also have a lot of other unbeat-able deals for you, and you can findmany of them in the Bible. But Im nofool; I know you wont even bother toread it if you dont first know that Imreal and that those promises are not

just a bunch of sweet words.So do this one thing: Ask Me to prove

Im real, that I am who I say I am, that Iwill do all the things I say I can do, andthen stand back and watch Me comethrough for you! I promise you I willdo it for anyone who honestly asks Me.

And I promise you this, you will be gladyou did!

On to the next step: After you putMe to the test, if you are satisfied



10/16

JESUS TOLD HIS DISCIPLES, If youknow these thingsthe keys to rightliving that He had taught themhappy are you if you do them (John13:17 KJV). That simple point has a

world of truth in it!Some time ago I was reading anarticle in a magazine. This is anexcerpt from it:

Everyone is after the same thing inlife, and that is happiness. Just to havea good time seems to be the purposeof life to some people. Unfortunately,most of them blunder until their shortlives are nearly over before they find

out what a good time really is.At first, when children, we think

that a good time means lots of fun andnot much work, to do as you like andget something for nothing. But manyfolks discover after a while that that isa very silly notion and leads to mis-chief, spankings, and stomachaches.

Eventually, after having plenty oftroubles, folks learn that success and

happiness do not come from grabbieverything we wantthat happinesdoes not mean idleness and chocolacreams! But it takes some folks a lontime to learn to go about it in the rig

way and to find true happiness.

Of course, Christians who are serious about their Christianity dont maa selfish quest for personal happinesbut they find it just the same. I hopecan convince you of this. Happinessto many a holy grail. They think thatthey miss finding happiness, they wihave missed the supreme purpose inlife. But that isntthe supreme purpo

in life! There is a poem by Ella WheeWilcox called Ive Lost the Road toHappiness, which goes like this:

Ive lost the road to happiness,Does anyone know it, pray?I was dwelling there

When the morn was fair,But somehow I wandered away.I saw rare treasure

And scenes of pleasureAnd ran to pursue them when lo,I had lost the road to happiness

And knew not whither to go.

Now I take the liberty to paraphrthe next verse:

Have you lost the road to happinessOh, I can lead you back.Take the road marked obedience,

To the right, up Gods own track!

So where can you find realhap-piness? Its found in obeying God!Strange to say, the mother of happi-ness is just plain old-fashioned obeence.

Joy is always the aftermath ofobedience! Gods Word says that if

you know these thingsJesus teac

HAPPINESS

BY VIRGINIA BRANDT BERG

>>>>THE ROAD TO



11/16

But this kind of joy is entirely diffeent from the merriment the world cahappiness. This confident message ohappiness runs triumphantly througout the Word of God, so dont think

that when you become a Christian itsome long-faced affair, all fenced inand hard and dark!

Christ set forth the fundamentals happiness, and told us that we shoulhave joy, to ask, and you will receivethat your joy may be full. People areon the wrong path if they strive forhappiness as a goal in itself, becausethat is to chase a shadow. Theres nosubstance in that at all!

True happiness is not somethingfrom the outsidethat you can pour intthe heart, but rather it springs up fromwithin the heart. True happiness is Gogiven and is a result of yielding to the

will of Godwhat God knows is bestand putting your life at Gods disposa

Is this a new thought to you? Doesseem unreal that you can find happi-ness by making Jesus Christ the masof your life? Thousands and thousanof people today will tell you they fountrue happiness and fulfillment in obedience to the Lord. He can do it for yoHe wantsto do it for you!

Are you dissatisfied, distraught,frustrated? Why not give God a chanat your heart? Before you again start some wrong trail to find just anotherdead end of dissatisfaction or frustration, why not turn to God?

Read Gods Word, and there you wfind the plan of happiness that God hfor you. Youll find Gods way! Remember that Jesus, when He was here onearth, constantly taught that there

was no happiness or no blessing equato the blessing of finding and follow-ing Gods plan and loving ways. Is itstrange that God can fully satisfy yousoul? Oh, He can!

ingshappy are you if you do them.Its true! A personal will yielded toGod brings rest of spirit, a heart right

with God brings joy, and a mindstayed on God brings peace.

Perfect obedience would be perfecthappiness if we had perfect confidencein the One we are obeying. Isnt thata wonderful thought? And so true! Itsreasonable too, for if the heart is right

with God and youre walking in obedi-ence to His Word, then He can fulfill in

you all of His wonderful promises. Whocould help but find happiness then?

Many people think they areunhappy because of conditions and

circumstances around them, but thatisnt itsomething is wrong in theheart. When the heart is right, all isright, but when the heart is wrong, allis wrong. They are at war with them-selves because they are out of harmony

with God.Jesus did not teach that the quest for

happiness should be abandoned, butthat you must go about it the right way.Jesus believed in and taught happiness,but He made it very plain that there areright and wrong ways of pursuing it.

Jesus understood our humanlonging for happiness, and that ourpursuing it the wrong way was one ofthe worlds greatest problems. He alsoknew the source of true happinessand had the power to give it to us. Hesaid, Ask, and you will receive, that

your joy may be full (John 16:24).

The Bible promises that one ofthe fruits of the Spirit will be joy(Galatians 5:2223), and Jesus Himselftold His disciples, I will see you againand your heart will rejoice, and your

joy no one wil l take from you (John16:22). There are so many Scripturesalong this l ine to prove that joy comesto a real Christian that I dont havespace to mention them all here.

True

happiness

is not

something

from the

outside

that you

can pour

into the

heart, but

rather it

springs

up from

within

the heart.



12/16

BY C. PETER VAN GORDER

IT HAPPENED TO M EIT HAPPENED TO ME The realization begins to dawn thatwere not getting any younger and wdont have as many strong years left.My wife and I were looking for newchallengesbut where? We needed tdecide which country to go to next, a

we needed to get it right.

We had several offers, but two stoout above the others. One was to woat theActivatedmagazines Californioffice; the other was to join a team

working in the Middle East. We addeup all of the advantages and disad-vantages in neat columns, but theycame out equal. We read Gods Wordand spent time daily trying to hearfrom Him what His will was and how

we fit into that plan, but it all seeme

a bit foggy. There were just too manyvariables to know exactly where eachpath would take us. What we needed

was one of those good old upright,downright, Heaven-right revelations

We wanted some words of assurancefrom the Lord, something we couldstand firm on later if fears and doubassailed us, something that we couldlook back on and know that we hadmade the right decision regardless othe circumstances we might find ourselves in.

One verse that has always been heful in times like this is Matthew 7:7easy reference to remember. Ask anit will be given you.Simple yet truThe passage goes on to say that if weask for bread, our heavenly Father

wont give us a stone. We ask, Heanswers. Sometimes His answer is ye

sometimes its no, and sometimes itwait.

For weeks we didnt know which wto go, so we kept asking. We were likethe importunate woman in a parablJesus told who kept pestering the juduntil he finally got fed up and gave h

what she wanted (Luke 18:18).The answer we needed came in th

form of a beautiful clear picturewh

MAKING DECISIONS IS

RARELY EASY TO DO. One ofthe most important times to get

it right is when you are deciding ona new job offer. In my career as a full-

time volunteer, I often have the luxuryof choosing which country I wish to

work in. Jesus said, The harvest isplenteous but the laborers are few.That means that the need is so great

that you could go just about anywhereand dig in and make a difference. Butof course, some job opportunities insome countries may be more suitablefor your talents than others.

About two years ago, my wife and Iwere at a crossroads. I had just turned50, and there is some indefinable thingthat happens to our psyche each timeour age rolls over to a new decade.

The Golden

Staircase



13/16

FEEDING READING

The prerequisitesubmit your will tothe Lord.

Luke 22:42John 5:30John 6:38John 7:17Romans 12:12

The first place tolook for Gods will is

in His Word.

Psalm 119:105,1302 Timothy 3:16

God sometimesreveals His willthrough prophecyand revelations.

1 Kings 19:12

Ezekiel 3:1011Acts 10:1920

God sometimesreveals His will

through dreams.

Job 33:1517Genesis 15:1216Genesis 20:27Genesis 31:2224Matthew 1:2021

Seek godly counsel.

Proverbs 11:14Proverbs 15:222 Corinthians 13:1

Consider obviouscircumstances.

2 Samuel 5:22251 Kings 17:19Mark 14:1216

Ask for confirmingsigns.

Genesis 24:141 Samuel 14:810

HOW TO FIND THE WILL OF GOD

PRAYER FOR THE DAYThank You Jesus for always being ready and

willing to come to my aid. Its a special token of

Your never-ending love that You care enough tohelp me in the decisions I face, even the seem-ingly small ones. Whenever problems arisethroughout the day, I know You are there to helpme solve them. You are truly concerned aboutevery little detail, and You always know best.

With each passing day, I want You to be morea part of my life and thoughts and decisions,because Youre so good to me!

one might call a vision. I once heardsomeone define visions as dreams youhave when you are awake. Others callthem pictures from Heaven, received

while in prayer.The picture was of a glowing golden

staircase that ascended to the right. In

our case this was significant becausewe were living in Texas at the time andthe Middle East was to the right of usas we looked at a map of the world,and California was to the left. That wasthe clear indication from the Lord that

we had been praying forour start-ing pointand we acted on it. As wedid, God confirmed His will throughanother vision, financial supply, andother answers to prayer.

It has been nearly two years nowsince we have been here in the MiddleEast, and we have never been happier!The need here is great, the people areextremely friendly and receptive, andnew doors of opportunity for serviceare opening daily.

After living this life of faith for some30 years now, I can truly say that Hehas never failed in one of all His goodpromises (1 Kings 8:56). God is nota man, that He should lie. Has Hesaid, and will He not do? Or has Hespoken, and will He not make it good?(Numbers 23:19).Jesus is our GoodShepherd and will always show the

way. All we have to do is listen to Hisvoice and follow.

God has a plan for my life. His wordsin Jeremiah 29:1113 remind me ofthis: I know the thoughts that I think

toward you, says the Lord, thoughtsof peace and not of evil, to give you afuture and a hope. Then you will callupon Me and go and pray to Me, and I

will listen to you. And you will seek Meand find Me, when you search for Me

with all your heart.

C. PETER VAN GORDER IS A FULL-TIME

FAMILY VOLUNTEER IN THE MIDDLE EAST.



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long after the tagged products those

consumers bought leave the store.Privacy advocates and civil libertariaalso say the technology designed fortracking clothing items at a very shorange can easily be adapted to trackand spying on people, just as softwacookies now track computer usersmovements online.

With little public fanfare, this newRFID technology is rolling out on amassive scale. Alien Technology, an

RFID tag maker, projects that withinthree years the company will sell 10billion RFID tags a year, and that thecost of a single tag will drop belowUS$0.05cheap enough that theymay start to appear in most products

Wal-Mart, the world largest retailer, hmandated the use of the RFID tagginby its suppliers on all their products b2005, and many other large retail outare expected to follow Wal-Marts lea

Another technology to keep an eyon is the new Electronic Product Cod(EPC). Hailed as the next-generationproduct code system, EPC could somday replace with a microchip the barcode (Universal Product Code, or UPfound on most merchandise today.

Whereas bar codes only identifygroupsof products, the EPC is design

NEW TECHNOLOGY AND THECOMING MARK OF THE BEAST

CAN YOU IMAGINE A WORLD in which

any store, restaurant, or other businessyou enter is able to identify you, makenote of what youre wearing, and evendetect how much money you have in

your wallet? Science fiction?Not forlong! Believe it or not, one day soonradio frequency identification (RFID)technology could be identifying,screening, and tracking us all.

RFID tags use radio frequencies totransmit a code that uniquely identi-

fies the tag. The silicon chips that holdRFID tagssome no bigger than agrain of saltare small enough thatthey could be placed in clothing, razorblades, library books, and even cur-rency.

RFID readers within 15 or 20 feet ofsome tags can pick up their signals.Global databases will let businesseskeep track of every location where anRFID signal has been read.

How might the tags identify you? If,for example, you buy a sweater using acredit card, your name could be foreverlinked with that particular item ofclothing.

Thats what worries privacy advo-catesthe ease with which compa-nies can read the tags and keep logs,identifying and profiling consumers

666 W TCH JOSEPH CANDEL



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to provide a unique serial number foreveryitem in the system. For example,at present all cans of Coke produced ata certain bottling plant or within a cer-tain country have the same bar code.Under EPC, each and every bottle orcan of Coke would have its own unique

identifier. Impossible, you say? The EPCis built around a 96-bit format that islarge enough to generate a unique codefor every grain of rice on the planet.

Retailers and manufacturers think a

one-of-a-kind product code could helpreduce theft and counterfeit goods, and

simplify the inventory process.The way its been designed, an EPCcan be linked to databases that canstore far more information about aparticular product than is possible withthe current bar code system. In addi-tion to the basic information providedby UPCitem, price, and manufac-turerthe EPC could link to informa-tion about the buyer and location ofthe item based on a complex system of

microchip tags and microchip readersthat communicate via radio frequency(RFID).

And RFID tags arent just for goodsfound in supermarkets and malls.

Applied Digital Solutions (ADS) of PalmBeach, Florida, is hoping that Ameri-cans can be persuaded to implant RFIDchips under their skin to identify them-selves when going to a cash machineor in place of using a credit card. The

surgical procedure, which is performedwith local anesthetic, embeds a 12-by-2mm RFID tag in the flesh of a humanarm. ADS even ran a special promotionurging Americans to get chipped. Thefirst 100,000 people to sign up wereoffered a $50 discount.

And why shouldnt you get chipped?That way you could simply walk into

a store, pick up the items you want,stroll through the reader on your wayout of the store, and the cost of theitems would automatically be chargedto your credit account. Not only that,but all the information regarding yourpurchases would be beamed to the

manufacturers, who would be ever sohappy to send you special offers onfuture purchases, or even to stock youup on their products at prearrangedtimes, billing you automatically.

The system would also put an endto shoplifting and other forms of theft

and fraud, as there would be no cashor credit cards to steal and every itemwould be linked to its rightful owner.There would be far fewer criminalsand drug dealers (again, no cash), andsociety would be much better off.Or

would it? It seems benigneven ben-eficialbut what about its potential totrack your every physical and financialmove?

The new technology is preparing

the public, and it wont be long tillthe mother of all silicon chips isready for its debutthe mark of theBeast, as predicted in the Bible. He[the False Prophet, top minister inthe Antichrists government] causesall, both small and great, rich andpoor, free and slave, to receive amark on [or in] their right hand oron their foreheads, and that no onemay buy or sell except one who has

the mark or the name of the Beast[the Antichrist], or the number ofhis name. Here is wisdom. Let him

who has understanding calculatethe number of the Beast, for it is thenumber of a man: His number is 666(Revelation 13:1618).

When the mark of the Beast comes,dont be duped into taking it!

Privacy

advocates

and civil

libertarians

say the

technology

designed for

tracking

clothing

items can

easily be

adapted to

tracking and

spying on

people.



16/16

Its natural to have your own ideas, opin-ions, and preferences. Thats the way youwere created, and its part of what makesyou the unique individual you are. Itsnatural, but it doesnt always lead to thewisest and best choices unless you alsoinvolve Me in the decision-makingprocess.

I love you and want you to behappy, fulfilled, and have everythingyou need, but for Me to help you allI can, you need to learn to let Medo the choosing. Theres no deci-sion too big or too small for Me tohelp you with. It may surprise youhow practical and down to earth Ican be! As you bring your plans orwishes to Me in prayer, I will give

you My thoughts, counsel, andinstruction.Its not that I want to control

you or dictate your every move,but from My vantage point I cansee things much more clearly thanyou can, and I always know whatwill work out best and make youand everyone else involved happiestin the end. So when you pray aboutwhat to do in a certain situation, ask

Me to override your own ideas andpersonal desires if I know that some-thing else would prove better.

Then, of course, you need to be will-ing to accept My counsel and do thingsthe way I show you. Thats often easiersaid than done, but as you watch Me workon your behalf, youll be happy you let Mehave the final say. I always give the verybest to those who leave the choice to Me!

FROM JESUS WITH LOVE

Be wise

let Me decide!

activated july 2004

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