The Greatest Christmas Present I Could Receive

This Christmas, I have received the best christmas present anyone could ask for. On December 19th at 9:47am, Brandon Scott Tyson was born. I am almost 40 years old and I have three children that are almost grown. I had some friends to say that they were happy when their kids finally were big enough to take care of themselves and that is definitely true but I cannot explain to you how I feel about this gift from God. He is so precious and I just want to stare at him all the time.

He favors my dad and that is so overwhelming for me because I miss him so much. Brandon does not hardly cry unless he is hungry and he loves to be loved on. God has a way of showing us how much he loves us. I never imagined that I would be a new father again but the Lord knew that I would. He new that this baby would bring me a new zeal for life.

When I look at Brandon, I think of all the abortions that go on in America today. I think of our government leaders who are for the abortions and it just makes me sick to think how anyone could purposely kill their child. Children are loved by God and even the Bible says "Children, come unto me".

Thank you Jesus for giving my wife Olga and I, Brandon. Jesus, thank you for bringing this beautiful life into our lives. Thank you for being a God that wants us to be happy. Jesus, please keep Brandon safe and warm always and give him good health. Help us to raise him in the ways of the Lord ad put your love in his heart. Jesus, let Brandon one day be like his grandfather. A man that loved you more than anything. Jesus, make me an example to Brandon. Thank you lord for my wife and all my children. In jesus name, AMEN.

And my Lifesong sings by Casting Crowns - Spanish Lyrics

In my last post, I listed the songs that we will be recording on our next album. We have picked wonderful songs to translated into spanish and the first one is "And my Lifesong Sing" by Casting Crowns.

English Lyrics - And Now my LIfesong Sings
I once was lost, but now I’m found
I once was lost, but now I’m found
So far away, but I’m home now
I once was lost, but now I’m found
And now my lifesong sings

I once was blind, but now I see
I once was blind, but now I see
I don’t know how, but when He touched me
I once was blind, but now I see

And now my lifesong sings
And now my lifesong sings
And now my lifesong sings

I once was dead, but now I live
I once was dead, but now I live
Now my life to You I give
Now my life to You I give
Now my life to You I give

Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Let my lifesong sing to You

Spanish Lyrics - Por Fin Quiero Vivir
Perdido Yo, Dios me Hallo
Perdido Yo, Dios me Hallo
Lejos Yo Fui, Mi Hogar Perdi
Perdido Yo, Dios me Hallo
Por fin quiero vivir

Ciego estaba, hoy miro yo
Ciego estaba, hoy miro yo
No se porque, pero me toco
Ciego estaba, hoy miro yo

Por fin quiero vivir
Por fin quiero vivir
Por fin quiero vivir

Estaba Muerto, Hoy Vivo yo
Estaba Muerto, Hoy Vivo yo
Entrego mi vida, a ti Senor
Entrego mi vida, a ti Senor
Entrego mi vida, a ti Senor

Aleluya, Aleluya
Por fin quiero vivir
(repite 4 veces)

Video of the Song - And my Lifesong Sings in English


This song is a wonderful testimony on a lost soul who has found God and wants to his life to be a witness to God. Samaritan Revival will be recording in February of 2009 at Daywind Records in Nashville, Tn.

Songs for our new Album for Samaritan Revival

We are working on our new album. I have had many people to ask my if we have music of our own. The answer is yes we do but we are not just a band, we are a ministry and when I hear an english song that touches my heart, I have an inner desire to translate the song into spanish so the latin people can also be touched by the song.

There is a problem with many songs in spanish that are christian. It is more like repeating the same words over and over again than a true message that can change your life. There are man good christians songs but the most popular is songs that have words like "I am yours" repeated twenty times. I know that there is a time for everything and during certain worship times, it is good to repeat something until it really enters your heart but we as a band want to make people think and realize what God is and what he can do for your life. This is our purpose and this is why both albums that we have recorded so far have been music especially chose with a proven track record of changing english speaking people's lives and now we want to bring this to the spanish speaking world.

In the next few blog entries, I am going to go over each song that will be on our new album which will be called "Set me Free". We will be using music from Mercyme and Casting Crowns. We will also use a couple of Southern Gospel Songs also. Very soon, I will name each blog post by the name of one of the songs and I will put the english words and the spanish translation. I will also be explaining what the song means to us as a ministry and as a christian.

Translating songs is a long and hard process because if you translate it word for word then it may not fit with the music. At the same time, you have want to make one hundred percent sure that the song in spanish has the same meaning as the english version. The process that we use is done in three steps. I translate the song word for word. I then pass the spanish version over to the group and they change certain words (keeping the same meaning) to fit with the music. Then the song is given back to me and if I feel the same power of the Holy Spirit in the spanish version as I do in the english, then we are ready to record.

These are the songs that we are translating to record on our next album in February of 2009.

And my Lifesong Sing by Casting Crowns
East to West by Casting Crowns
Praise you in the Storm by Casting Crowns
Set me Free by Casting Crowns
The Word is Alive by Casting Crowns
The Center of my Joy by Richard Smallwood
Feels like Redemption by Michael English
Daystar - Gaither Vocal Band
When He was on the Cross, I was on His mind - Gaither Vocal Band
You Reign by Mercyme

These are incredible songs and we hope to do our best. Make sure you check back and see the spanish Translations and what these songs mean to us.

Philip

A Time to Live and a Time to Die

Lately I have had one of those nagging phrases in my head, "A Time to Live and a Time to Die". For the life of me, I could not understand why this was popping in my head while I was trying to sleep. Then I remembered Ecclesiastes chapter 3.

In verse one it says "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven". It does not say some things, it says every thing. This means that whether you are in bad shape, broke, unhealthy, this is a season that will come to an end. It also means that if you are on top of the world, money in the bank, popular, this will come to and end also. To everything there is a season. This is why it is so important never to lose our faith in God no matter what situation we are in. If you are doing great, keep your eyes on God. If you are down and devastated, keep your eyes on God.

The life of Job is so relevant to all of this because here was a man that had it all. He was rich, he had a bunch of kids which back in those days was a good thing, and he was well known. All of sudden, his world just came tumbling down. He lost everything he had, even his children. Sometimes I wonder if his wife was being used by God to test Job or if she was just full of the devil because she told Job to curse God for everything that was happening. The more you read about Job, you think that he turned away from God. His views definitely became blurry, but this goes to show that you may be mistaken about the way things are or why they are happening but the important thing is your heart and God knew that Job loved Him. That is why Job said, I would rather die than to curse God. Job may of not known it at the moment but this was a season and it would pass. The Bible says that God gave him many times over more than what he had.

The second verse of the same chapter of Ecclesiastes says "A Time to be born, and a time to die." You can look at this in many ways but let me tell you how I look at it. We are all born as a baby. This is how we come to life. We are conceived, we spend around nine months in the womb of our mother, and then we come into this world. The question is, "Are we really living when we are born?" Is this really the time that we are born. To come into a harsh world naked and cold. I believe that we are truly born when we meet Jesus for the first time. When we meet the one that died on the cross for us. This is our time to live.

To be able to represent our Lord Jesus Christ on this earth and have the opportunity to spread His word to the lost. To have a friend more powerful than any force in the universe to listen to us when we pray. Someone that will fill us with peace and joy when we are in the middle of headache. Someone that has given hope that one day we will be living in a mansion in heaven with Him. This to me is the season of living. If you do not know Christ as your savior, you are not really born. You are physically but not spiritually and it is a lonely road if you have to travel it alone.

But like the Bible says, there is a Time to Live and a Time to Die. To everything there is a season. Yes, we all have to die. The Bible says that everyman will be born and will die but guess what, if you have lived with Christ in your heart, your death will be a very very very short season because faster than the blinking of an eye, you will be in heaven. The Bible says that Jesus will come like a thief in the night. We do not know when it is going to happen but it is going to happen. Death to a Christian is only one last breath and then we get to see Glory.

I love this chapter because if you read it all, you realize that we must all go through many hardships and triumphs, joy and sadness, riches and poverty, but one day it will all come to an end and we will live for eternity with our Lord.

To end, I want to say one last thing. In verse seven it says "a time to keep silence and a time to speak". I will give my expert view on this, (I am no expert). If you are going to judge others and put people down, keep silent. If you are going to help others and give them words of hope and the message of salvation, it is a time to speak. Let us love one another no matter what situation they or you may be in because according to this passage, the people we may be putting down may be the ones one day we will need to pull us up.

Philip

Music from Bill and Gloria Gaither

If someone asked you the quesiton, "Who has had the biggest impact in the christian music industry today, who would it be?' To answer this question, there is one place so have to look. It is not on the record charts because these numbers change from day to day. I am talking about music that has lasted for decades and the music is still impacting the lives of people around the world. There is only one person or let me say family that has done this and hands down it is Bill and Gloria Gaither.

If you purchase a hymn book and you start looking at all the different songs inside that hymn book, you will see that the Gaither family has written many of the songs. I saw a report on the internet where they have written over 1,000 songs and the majority are sung every day in churches around america.

These are just some of the songs that was written by them. 1. Abide In Me 2. All God's Children 3. At The Foot Of The Cross 4. Because He Lives 5. Broken And Spilled Out 6. Calm Assurance 7. Come, Holy Spirit 8. Created In His Image 9. Dream On 10. Even So, Lord Jesus, Come 11. Feeling At Home In The Presence Of Jesus 12. Fully Alive 13. Gentle Shepherd 14. Get All Excited 15. He Touched Me 16. He's Still The King Of Kings 17. I Am A Promise 18. I Believe In Hill-Mt Calvary 19. I Came To Praise The Lord 20. I Could Never Outlove The Lord 21. I Walked Today Where Jesus Walked 22. I Will Praise Him 23. I Will Serve Thee 24. I'm Something Special 25. I've Been To Calvary 26. I've Just Seen Jesus 27. If It Keeps Getting Better 28. In The Upper Room 29. It Is Finished 30. It Will Be Worth It All 31. It's Beginning To Rain 32. Jesus Is Lord Of All 33. Jesus, I Believe What You Said 34. Jesus, I Heard You Had A Big House 35. Joy Comes In The Morning 36. Learning To Live Like A Child Of The King 37. Let's Just Praise The Lord 38. Lovest Thou Me 39. Man Can't Live By Bread Alone 40. More Of You 41. My Faith Still Holds 42. Next Time We Meet 43. Not By Might, Not By Power 44. Plenty Of Room In The Family 45. Precious Jesus 46. Reaching 47. Redeeming Love 48. Something Beautiful 49. Tell It To Your Children 50. Thanks To Calvary 51. That's What Jesus Means To Me 52. The Church Triumphant 53. The Family Of God 54. The King Is Coming 55. The Longer I Serve Him 56. The Old Rugged Cross Made The Difference 57. The Spirit Of Jesus Is In This Place 58. The World Didn't Give It To Me 59. There's Something About That Name 60. This Could Be The Dawning Of That Day 61. This Is The Day The Lord Hath Made 62. This Is The Time I Must Sing 63. Unshakable Kingdom 64. Upon This Rock 65. Walk On The Water 66. Why Should I Worry Or Fret 67. Worthy The Lamb

If you want to be blessed. Listen to their music. It is beautiful, powerful, spiritual, and anointed.

Philip

Emails from other countries asking for christian donations

I imagine that everyone who has an email account has received emails saying that they have won the lottery or emails that talk about needing someone to help them get a bunch of money out of a bank overseas. Most emails like this start off by saying "I am the son of the late general", and so on. Well, we all know that these emails are scams and I guess they keep coming because some people have definitely fallen for them. What they are trying to do is for you to give them your bank account information and then they wipe you out.

Some of these scammers have learned a new trick. They are now sending emails saying that they are pastors and they need support. Just about all of these emails come from Africa. It could be that there is a pastor our there that has written an email to millions of people he does not even know asking for money for his church but I really doubt it.

I get many emails from so called African pastors saying, "I have a church and we are all alone and we want to join your ministry. Please send money so we can feed our children and we can win people for the kingdom of heaven". Do these guys really think that I am going to send them money without even knowing them? Guess what? I may not but there are many that do. There are people (especially the elderly) that will write them back. That is the first mistake. Then the giver will be given instructions on how to send funds. Some go as far as to say, "our church in africa wants to give you a love offering. Please give us your wire instructions so we can deposit the funds". In other words, once they get a donation from you, they write you and say that in gratitude, their church wants to give something back.

These guys are not dumb. They look at this like fishing and they know that if they throw enough bait out there, they will eventually catch a big fish. Here is what you need to think about when you receive one of these emails. It takes money to send out a million email addresses. If these people say that they live in a poor village with no electricity or water, how are they sending all these emails out asking for money.

There are many organizations and ministries that need your help and please never stop giving but be sure and give to ministries that you know about. Give to missionaries that have visited your church or you know they really do exist. Take time and call their office and get to know the people you are going to give to. Here is a good way of being careful. If an organization does not have an office in the U.S, then you need to be very careful. It is not just your money but it is God's money and we are to be good stewards.

Just a little advice from us. We have traveled around many countries and we have seen it all. Just be careful. You can help many people change their lives but you can also throw your money into the hands of scam artist. Give to who you know and stay away from people who offer no accountability.

Philip

I have started writing a book

For a very long time, I have had a desire to write a book. I can't really explain the reason for this but it is more than a desire, it feels like a need. I want to tell my story but I also feel like I need it for myself. I have had a very interesting life so far, more than you can imagine. Living in Central America most of my life has been extremely exciting and interesting but it had also allowed me to not by so closed minded as some people are.

We cannot fault people for being closed minded. It really depends on where and how they were raised. I have friends who have never left the state or even the county they live in. It is hard people who have been stuck in one place to really have a sense on how the majority of people live around the world. There is a song that Keith Green sings called "Open Your Eyes". One of the verses says "Open your eyes to the world all around you, this world is much more than the things that surround you". He was totally right and I thank the Lord that I have had the opportunity to see other parts of the world, other cultures, and other peoples.

I have already started writing and I have a publisher who has already promised to take a look at it when I am finished. I have no idea when this will be because everything seems to come day by day. I write until I run out of thoughts and then the next morning, I wake up and write again. I guess when I am finished, I will take a look at it and I will either erase it all and start over or I will know that this is what I want people to know.

One thing that is in my character is that I am a very open person. Being a missionaries kid, I grew up being taught that I was supposed to be an example to others. As christians, we are all supposed to be examples but the problem with having something like this hanging over your head is the fact that I seemed to hide many feelings deep inside of me. As teenagers, we all go through many changes and it is important to be able to have an open door to be able to talk about what is going on inside. If you don't, those feelings will one day come pouring out. A kid may have feelings of self doubt and he may even have questions that he has about the bible and he may even doubt some things that are in the bible. This does not mean that he is devil possessed or losing his mind, this just means that he needs someone to talk to him and to pray with him. The power of evil is very strong and we truly need to be close to our families and we need to be open with them.

I think that I have gotten totally off subject but as I said before, when I start writing, I write what is on my heart. One sad point for me today is that my daughter Stephany graduated from High School in Honduras. Unfortunately, I am in the states and I cannot be with her because we are about to have another baby and my wife is going to have surgery because the baby is in a breach position.

Please pray for my wife Olga. She is supposed to have surgery on December 4th to deliver the baby. We are all excited but we are also anxious.

I guess this is all for now. I really enjoy writing to all of you and I hope that if you have now joined our blog mailing list, you will. Please subscribe if you have not subscribed yet. I do not know if these blogs help you any of they sure help me.

Philip

Thanksgiving is an Opportunity

As we all know, there are 365 days in a year but there are 3 days that are extremely special to all of us because it causes us to remember an event and causes to do something that normally we may not do.

The first is Easter. This day is when most people go to church. Some people only go to church on this day. This has become a tradition for many people but it is more than a tradition. This is the day that we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ after being in the tomb for three days. It is time when families come together.

The second is Thanksgiving. Many families are separated because of work or other circumstances but just this year alone, over 40 million people traveled throughout the U.S to be with their families. Thanksgiving is not just about eating turkey and sweet potato pie, it is a time to give thanks to the Lord for everything that God has given them.

When the pilgrims reach the new world back in the 1600's after a terrible voyage on the ship called the Mayflower, they went through a terrible winter and they suffered incredibly. When they finally had their first harvest, the pilgrims all came together and prayed thanking God for his mercy on them. Even though cultures around the world for hundreds of years have celebrated some kind of thanksgiving for their harvest, our thanksgiving is based on the pilgrims who came to america.

On this day, we have an opportunity to sit back and think about what God had given us. I know that many people are out of work and times are very hard but compared to other people in this world, especially in third world countries, we are truly blessed. We are eating turkey when many people do not even have clean water to drink. We should thank God for our families, our health, our lives, and most of all, we should thank God for loving us so much that He gave his only son to die on the cross for us. This day is truly an opportunity for all us. Let you family know how much you love them. If you have had problems before with any family members, please go to them and give them a hug and a kiss. Tell them how much you appreciate them.
The Bible says for us to always GIVE THANKS UNTO THE LORD.

The third day is Christmas. The day that we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on this earth. Our savior who came to this earth to show us true grace and love and sacrifice. There is nothing wrong with traditions. One tradition is to give gifts to your love ones and to show love to the ones you do not even know by giving to charities and to the homeless. Christmas is a time of giving and sharing but never forget that the true meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Why did i mention these three dates? All three of these dates our thanksgiving. We should give thanks to God on all three of these days because they all represent something very special. The truth is, thanksgiving should be a daily activity in each of our lives.

Philip

A lesson to be learned

One of my hobbies/jobs is to spend a great amount of time on the internet. I answer many emails each day and I work updating our webpages. I have probably seen hundreds of videos from mission trips, churches and ministries but I have found one video that has opened my eyes to how low our society has fallen. There are almost 4,000 abortions each day in the U.S alone. Thousands of parents each year abandon their children and thousands more loose their children to the state because of drug use and crime. When I saw this video, I almost came to tears because it truly shows how much buffalos love their young. It also showed me that when a single buffalo was caught up in a situation that was to much for her, she went back to look for help and boy did she get it.

Please watch the whole video. THE ENDING WILL MAKE BRING YOU TO TEARS. I know that if you take time to watch this video, you will be touched. We have much to learn as human beings. Please take 10 minutes out of your time and watch this video. You can send your comments to philip@samaritanrevival.com

A Unexpected Surprise

Have you gone to bed at night thinking God you made through the day? I have and let me tell you that some days are just horrible. This happens to everyone but have you awaken the next day and whether it was a phone call or a visit or maybe an email but everything just turns around. Twelve hours can change your life or it can also bring you down to your knees.

I have having a pretty bad week. I was not feeling good physically and for some reason I was feeling down. I had a few problems I needed to work through and I was feeling a bit anxious. I may be almost 40 years old but I still call my mom when I need advice. She is probably the wisest person that I know even though sometimes I do not like what I hear but I know that what she is saying is true. She told me over the phone that God has some great things waiting ahead for us because the devil was attacking not only me but the whole Samaritan Revival Group. Well, almost everyone because Stephany is unbelievable. She can find good in everything. Talking about a positive attitude, sometimes it just overwhelms us they way she can look at a problem and just smile and go on. She has that gift and not many people have it. Getting back to the story, Aaron has had his wife in the Hospital extremely ill, Eliu's baby has been very sick and Harold's wife had to have emergency surgery. All of this happened in about a months time.

On my part, I was feeling like I was on a thread mill. I would send out emails to people and they would not even answer me back. I did not know what was going on. I was booking appointments for the group and God was blessing this but I was also trying to get a distribution deal for our group. I probably wrote 200 emails to distribution offices around America and no one would even write back. Being an Indie Christian Spanish group in America and trying to succeed is like asking for snow in Miami during the month of July. We knew that if something was going to happen, it would have to be God that would open up that special door for us.

Like I said, I went to bed feeling down but I did not forget to pray. This time, I did not ask God specifically for something, I just asked Him to show us how we could serve him more. I just said "God, may you will be done in our lives". The next morning I woke up and I received an email from New Day Christian Distribution which is one of the largest christian music distributors in america. They asked me to send them a CD of ours so they could review it. Well, I sent them the CD and they reviewed it and they accepted our CD to be distributed Nation Wide. Just a week later, we were shipping out Cd's.

If that was not enough, I spoke to Daywind Records in Nashville, Tn and they want us to record with their label a CD called the Top 16 Southern Gospel Hits in Spanish. I just about fell out of my chair. Our group is only 16 months old and God has given us a distribution deal and a future record deal.

How did this all happen? The answer is WAITING ON GOD. What is more exciting, an expected gift or an unexpected surprise. We cannot put a time table on what the Lord is going to do or when He is going to do it. All of us at Samaritan Revival our very excited but we know that this is an open door and this door can close just as easy as it was opened. We have to keep our eyes on the Lord and we have to let Him guide us each step of the way.

Here is a video of the Samaritan Revival group singing Midnight Cry. This is a special song for us because we will not stop working for Kingdom of God until we hear the MIDNIGHT CRY.

Hatred and Christianity

The title of this article is Hated and Christianity. These two words do not fit no matter how you try to put them together but unfortunately it is something that is being practiced today. Let us see what the definitions of these two words are. The definition of hate is "dislike intensely; feel antipathy or aversion towards". The definition of a Christian is "Professing belief in Jesus as Christ or following the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus". This definition was taken from a dictionary, not from the Bible but nevertheless, it is true.

It seems that today Christianity has been divided into two groups. I know that there are exceptions and there are many wonderful christians that are not part of these two groups but unfortunately, the world uses the bad to stereotype all christians.

The first group is a form of extreme liberal christianity. Basically, to make it easy to understand, as a christian you can come as you like, act like you want, say what you want, live like you want and worship in your own way. Do not worry about salvation or hell, we will try to fix your finances and your low self esteem. We do not need to preach the whole bible because most of it is not relevant to us anyway. As long as you know that God loves you then that is enough.

The second group has a theme of hatred. The call themselves conservatives but they have no idea what being a conservative really is. They teach that God hates us all. They teach that God wants us all in hell and that Jesus has to plead with him to allow us to be saved. They teach that once you have fallen in sin, you are doomed. There is no redemption and that you should just wait it out until it is your turn to die. There is no hope, no peace, and no joy for anyone that does not follow strict guidelines that are placed by "holy men" on this earth. There are some even more extremist like Fred Phelps that says that God hates America, he says that he wishes that every american soldier in Iraq would be killed because they serve a nation that is hated by God. If you do not believe me then just look up his name in google. He even pastors a baptist church.

Why are we so divided? When has the Bible become to difficult to understand? There is one verse in the Bible that says it all. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave is only begotten son, so whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish but have eternal life. GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD. I know I am always writing about Love but this is what Jesus showed and did when he was on this earth. How could our Holy Father give his only son to die on a cross if He did not love us? I should not even ask that question because the Bible already says that God did it because He loves us.

Do you know what a conservative is? One definition is "a person who is reluctant to accept changes and new ideas". This is a good definition because we should not try to change what the Bible says. We should not put our own ideas in and try to make them some type of biblical referendum. Here is the bottom line and this is what the Bible says. God sent his son to die on the cross for us. We must accept Him into our heart and ask Him to forgive us of our sins. We then will become born again and the Bible says that old things have passed away and now they are new. We become like new born babies and we start growing in the Lord. Does this mean that we will never make a mistake? NO! We will make many mistakes but as long as our heart is right and we turn to God for forgiveness, he will forgive and restore. What happens it we do not receive Jesus as our savior? The Bible says that we will be judged for our sins and we will go to hell. This is not a new idea, a change in the way the Bible is read, it is the Word of God. Revelation 20:15 says, "If your name is not found in the book of life, you will be cast into the lake of fire". This does not mean that God hates us. He hates sin. God is so holy that sin cannot accept someone that has not been redeemed by the blood of His son but one we accept Christ as our savior, everything changes. Our life changes and we now belong to Him.

Does this mean that God does care about our finances or our self esteem or any other problems that we have? Of course He does. A father cares about his children and He wants his children to be happy and content. He wants all of us to be successful and full of joy. But first, we must lay down our life and give it to Him totally. Not half way to totally. Does this give us a right to judge others? The answer is NO. The Bible plainly says that we should not judge. God is the only one that has the authority to judge.

Hatred and Christianity do not go together. I am proud that I am a conservative but I am not an extremist. I am a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ. Me desire is to see people saved and I will work until i die for His kingdom but I also have to work each day to keep my own life clean and my eyes placed of the cross of Jesus.

Let's try to stop the hatred. Let us also open our eyes and see that God is holy and we must submit to His will.

Philip Tyson

The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread

One of my faults is not knowing how to turn my brain off when I am going to sleep at night. Once the lights go out, my mind starts to work and a numerous amount of thoughts pass thru my mind. Tonight has been no exception and I have been thinking very heavily about love. This is such a strong and powerful word. The Bible Says in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, verse 2 and 3:

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

I want you to read these verses very slowly. This passage is more powerful than you can imagine because it really defines how powerful love is. Imagine being able to understand all mysteries of the earth, captivate all knowledge known to man and have faith so strong that you could actually move a mountain. A person like this would be lifted up as a great man, a respected man, a man of integrity but the Bible says that if he does not have charity or love, HE IS NOTHING. Can you grasp the meaning of what this is saying? It is easy to understand but hard to believe unless you are a true christian. Why should we believe this as a christian? Because the only reason that Jesus died on the cross for us was because He loved us so much. He had the power to call the angels down from heaven, He had the power to come off that old rugged cross but his decision was to stay on that cross and suffer because Jesus loved us enough to die for us.

Verse 3 goes even further into the depth of love. You can feed the hungry or you can sacrifice your body for a cause but if it is not because of love, the Bible says it is for nothing. i have lived in Honduras and Nicaragua all of my life and my heart still breaks when I see a poor child walking barefoot. There is something that you may not know about these children and that is the power they have in the way they look at you. A child can be behind you and you can feel his eyes on you like a 100 pound bag on your shoulders. They stare at you with a look of wanting or needing something in their life. I have seen other organizations visit villages to give out a burritos or a taco to hundreds of kids and then they drive away. Their stomachs may be filled for the moment but that look of despair in their eyes does not go away.

It is so true to say that the hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. These children need to feel love. They need to know that someone cares for them and most of all, they need to know that Jesus loves them so much that He died on a cross for them. Our ministry is a TRUE LOVE ministry. Our desire has not been just to fill empty stomachs but to change those eyes of despair into eyes of HOPE and JOY. Yes we feed hungry children. We provide over 750,000 plates of food each year but we also provide these children with LOVE and HOPE.

This is the reason why Joan Tyson decided to not only purchase food for these children but to build feeding centers where they could come each day to receive their meal. You could almost call these centers a shelter for the suffering because each child is known personally and before they eat, they are taught how much Jesus loves them. My father once said, what good is it to feed a hungry child if they are going to one day die and go to hell because no one ever showed them how to be saved. There is no way that I could tell you how many children since 1983 have been saved. What I can tell you is that many of our national pastors and school teachers were once children who looked at us with despairing eyes but once they experienced the love of Jesus Christ, their lives were changed. They accepted Jesus into their heart and LOVE entered their life.

This is why we started educating these children. Since 1988, thousands of children have received a christian education and they grew up to have families that now go to church and worship God. This did not start by providing a plate of food. It started by giving a child a hug and by telling them that Jesus loves them more than they could ever imagine. It started by sacrificing not to give but to love. What we have to understand is that we have to give to love but we do not have to love to give. Many give for a tax write off but God does not bless this. What we do, we have to do it because we want to show LOVE.

We are entering the Christmas season. A season of love. We celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on this earth. God sent his son as a baby boy who would one day show us what TRUE LOVE is all about. Don't you think that we should do the same? Should we not be examples as followers of Christ in showing TRUE LOVE to others? Only God can show you what you need to do and there may be someone in your life that needs to be shown love. They may need help and God is waiting for you to take that step forward to change someone's life. What ever you do, please do it in the name of Jesus and if you help someone physically, let them know that Jesus loves them so much that He died on the cross for them.

One way you can help us show love is by helping us through the Feed the Hungry Christmas program. There are thousands of children who go to sunday school in our churches who do not have sponsors. For many years, we have purchased thousands of presents for these children. It is such a wonderful time for us when we start making up thousands of christmas sacks with gifts and candy to give out to these children. This is all done in love because these children are taught that Jesus loves them so much that he burdened the hearts of Christians in the U.S. to sacrifice so they could have a toy and some candy for christmas.

If you feel burdened to help us with the Feed the Hungry Christmas please click HERE to go to our Feed the Hungry Christmas page so you can donate any amount you like. You can also go to www.gsbmonlinestore.com and you will see the option on the left hand category. Please do this only if God has laid this on your heart.

Remember the tittle of this message, "THE HUNGER FOR LOVE IS MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO REMOVE THAN THE HUNGER FOR BREAD".

May God Bless You,
Philip

P.S. We have raised now $525.00 for the construction of the Revival Center in Honduras. Thank you so much for your sacrifice. If you have not donated yet and would like to make a donation please click HERE.

You never know what tomorrow may bring

Have you ever felt stuck in the mud? No matter how hard you work or how much effort you put into reaching a goal, you just cannot get started. On the other hand, have you ever been cruising along without any speed bumps in the road and all of a sudden everything just seems to fall apart? You never know what tomorrow may bring.

If we could only look into the future, wouldn't that be great. To know what is coming so we can be prepared for it. Many people have a problem with not knowing what is coming next. They lay at night not able to sleep because they do not know what tomorrow will bring. When the phone rings, they are afraid to answer because it may be bad news. It would surprise you to know just how many people suffer from this each day.

Honestly, I hate no knowing. When someone calls me and they set up to meet me to discuss something several days in advance, I cannot stand the waiting time. I like to know NOW. I do not like surprises but we all have to deal with this because we cannot get our way every time. Life does not give us this luxury.

The solution to this is simple and it can be hard. It really depends on how much faith you have in God. When you put your life in God's hands, and you trust Him totally, you come to realize that no matter what the future has in store for you, God is in control. This does not mean that everything is going to come out like you want it to come out. I heard a preacher say just the other day that God will break you before He will use you. How will He break you? Only God knows but He will never abandon you no matter what you are going through. Tomorrow is a question because we may have an hourly schedule but we really never know what is coming but God does.

I remember when I applied back in 1990 for a Radio permit in Honduras. I wanted to build a Christian Radio Station. I walked into the government office and applied. I had no paperword, just a form that was given to me. When the government official received the application, he let me know right off that it would be almost impossible for this contract to go through. I cannot really explain it but I left that office with peace in my heart. It was not the kind of peace that assured me that the permit would be given, it was just a feeling or a mentality of not worrying about it. If it came through, GREAT, if it did not, OH WELL!

I didn't really think about it anymore until I received a phone call nine months later. I remember picking up the phone and a male voice said, "is this Philip Tyson?" I said yes. He said "Your radio permit has been approved." For a moment, I did not even know what he was talking about. I had put this in the hands of the Lord and for some reason that only God knows, He wanted me to wait nine months for this permit to come through. This is how the Samaritan Radio Network started. We are now the largest Christian Radio Network in Central America. YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT TOMORROW MAY BRING.

I am no expert about prophecy or anything else but I can tell you this. Let God handle things. Do what you have to do and then wait on God. If it is His will, it will happen. If it is not, it wont. It is that simple. We have to put effort into what we believe God is calling us to do but let us not rush the Lord. He works on His timeline and when the time is right, tomorrow will be a wonderful day.

Philip Tyson

Anxiety and Fear or Hell and Heaven?

If you turn on your TV and start switching thru an endless amount of channels that we have today, you see many christian tv stations from all over the U.S. There is the God channel, the Church Channel, Gospel Channel, TBN, Word Channel, and many more that I cannot remember. What is true is that there are many Tv channels with a christian label.

As I was switching from channel to channel, I heard a few minutes of several sermons that was being preached and something really came to a reality in that moment for me. No one was preaching about hell. No one was preaching about sin. Every single sermon that I heard was about how to get rid of anxiety, fear, stress or sadness. Many were just talking about how to improve your finances. I am sure that there are many TV preachers that do preach about redemption and salvation but on this day, I heard none at all.

I know that it is important for Christians to be able to overcome many situations in their life like anxiety and fear. This is very very important but when does this message become old. What if all you heard sunday after sunday was this type of sermon. Here was the catch. After each sermon that I heard, the preacher would say "If you really want to know how to overcome these things, BUY MY BOOK".

I dont judge others. I am nobody to criticize anyone so I am not going to. I just want to say that when I was in sin, I needed a message that touched my heart in away that I cannot explain. I needed a message that scared me and convicted me and let me know that I was a sinner and that Jesus was the only hope for my life. A message that the Holy Spirit could use to put me under conviction. I do want to know that God can take care of my physical needs but we have to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the power that God has to bring us out of this dark sinful world. We have to preach that Jesus died on the cross for us, he shed His blood so that we could have the opportunity to be saved, to be born again.

Living in this human body causes us to inherit many sicknesses. We have nerves that run through our human body that sometimes go out of whack and causes us to have enormous fear and anxiety. We have organs that after a while will stop working and will cause us to suffer. We have a brain that after a certain amount of time, will stop learning and start forgetting. But we have a soul that will last for eternity and if we give our life to Jesus, we will live in a mansion that Jesus has built for us in heaven.

I thank the preachers who worry and try to help our physical needs but this should always and I mean always be secondary to the Great Commission that says to Go INTO ALL THE WORLD AND PREACH THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST.

Philip Tyson

God can make your dreams come true

Do you have dreams about the future? Do you ever think about where you want to be one year from now? Do you have goals that you have not met yet but you dream about accomplishing those goals and going even further? We are going to talk about this for a little bit and lets just see what conclusion we come to.

There are different types of dreams. There are financial dreams, dreams about having a family, dreams about your personal appearance or in other words loosing weight or even gaining weight. There are some people that also dream about finding peace and finding a way to get out under so much stress.

The Bible says that "He will give you the desires of your heart". Who is he saying this to? Is he talking to just anyone who is willing to ask him or is this promise directed to a certain group or race. I know that all of you know people who are achievers. It seems that everything they touch turns to gold. No matter what they do, they cannot fail and all their dreams seem to come true.

The problem with this is that as humans, we are only able to see the outside layer of a person. We are only able to see how they act, how they speak, the material things they may have, but we have no idea what is going on inside their heart. Did you know that many of the suicides today are people who are not poor. Many of these people seem to be successful but they end up taking their life. WHY?

The Bible says that "what does it matter is we gain the world and lose our soul". Material things do not make us happy. It may fill a void for a short time but the emptiness will return. You see, only God can give you what you truly need. My desire is that every christian in the world be rich and successful but that may not be the plan of God. God knows each and everyone of us personally and he knows what we really need.

The Apostle Paul gave us a tremendous and wealthy position to follow God and he never regretted it. Even though he went through every type of sacrifice you can imagine, what did he say before he died? He said that he had ran the good race and fought the good fight and he did not regret the decision he had made to follow Jesus. What was his dream? His dream was to stay faithful and to finish well. Our dream should be to finish well. To come to the end of our life and be able to say, "I have not been perfect but I have stayed faithful to the Lord".

Here is the exciting part. If you keep your eyes on Jesus and if you stay faithful, He will give you the desires of your heart. God is a good God. He is almighty and powerful and He is loving. Remember though that God is not on our timeline. We never know when the blessings will come but what I can tell you is that if you are a born again christian and you do not receive rewards here on earth, you will and I mean YOU WILL receive them in heaven.

Philip Tyson

Do you suffer from Anxiety?

Feeling anxiety is a terrible feeling. It is a feeling of not knowing what is going to happen. Anxiety sometimes can be a condition that is in your families history but certain situations in life can also bring on anxiety. Today, many people really do not understand how powerful anxiety can when it attacks a person. It is so powerful that is can bring a strong man to his knees, it can bring tears to a so called macho man and it can also cause panic attacks.

There is a syndrome called Prolong Anxiety Syndrome. Basically, this is when anxiety builds up inside of you but you do not really know that it is there and then all of a sudden, it will bust out like a tornado and you can feel like you are going to die. I should now because I have had problems with anxiety. My father who accomplished some incredible things in his life had this syndrome when he was younger. Here is the problem. There is no medical cure. You can take pills to control it but medically, you have to live with it and you have to learn to accept it. The hardest part is learning to accept it. Let us see for a moment what the Bible has to say about this.

There are several verses in the Bible that deal with anxiety. Proverbs 12:25 says "Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad". When a person has heaviness in the heart, this is a sign of anxiety which is also fear. The questions is, Fear of what. Most of the time, this fear is a sense of non accomplishment, fear of failing or fear of no knowing. The Bible in Psalms 34:4 give us hope, "I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears". There are four words in this verse that are the most important words for anyone that is having problems with anxiety. I SOUGHT THE LORD. These words can change your life but you truly have to follow these four very important words.

I am a common sense kind of a guy so lets see what are some common suggestions for people who have anxiety, fear and worry in their life. I am no doctor but these are the suggestions that I can give you.

SLEEP - Humans generally need 8 or 9 hours of sleep per day. Sleep deprivation can increase anxiety. Get enough rest. If you cannot sleep, you may need to seek God’s help and perhaps that of a physician.

BE MORE REALISTIC - Many people are worried and anxious about events that will never actually will happen to them. Relax. Focus on today. Take life one day at a time.

LISTEN to relaxing, soothing music. There is some great Christian music available that can help you focus on God and leave your fears and worries behind. It may also help to listen to good Christian speakers and teachers.

FUN - If at all possible, do something that you enjoy. It is good to get some recreation on a regular basis. Take a break. Get your mind off your fears and worries, and have some fun.

TALK to someone. Don’t hold all the anxiety inside. It can be a big relief to share your fears and worries with someone else -- a friend, relative, pastor or counselor. If fear and anxiety is an ongoing problem in your life, schedule a regular time each week to talk with someone.

TAKE ACTION - If there is something practical and wise that you can do to alleviate the problem or avoid needless danger, take action. Don’t put it off. Procrastination will generally raise your anxiety level.

EXERCISE - Medical studies show that exercise can help lower anxiety. If you are healthy enough to exercise, try it. Regular brisk walks, running, swimming or other exercises can be a real stress reducer.

Take one step at a time. Try your best to look at the good instead of the bad and most of all, Seek after God. Remember the four important words, "I sought the Lord".

I can't promise you that this will cure you. Anxiety is worst than most people that do not suffer from this will ever imagine but as they say, "the sun always rises in the morning", and most likely, you will be there to see it.

Philip Tyson

What is a Missionary?

What is really a Missionary? Here is what the dictionary says.

A missionary is a member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith; someone who proselytizes. The word "mission" is derived from the Latin missionem (nom. missio), meaning "act of sending" or mitto, mittere, literally meaning "to send" or "to dispatch",[citation needed] the equivalent of the Greek-derived word "apostle" from apostolos, meaning "messenger".

Here is the Bibles definition of a Missionary.

Matthew 28:18-20 (King James Version)

18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

There you have it. The dictionary plainly expresses the fact that a Missionary is someone that is sent and the Bible says that Jesus is the one who as sent us to Go and teach all Nations. These verses does no specify who is being sent. This is a general commandment for all Christians. We are commanded to all be Missionaries.

Does this mean that we have to leave our home, our town, or our state? The answer is no. There are several different types of missionaries but the two most common our home and foreign. Each has a special calling and one is no greater than the other. Yes, foreign does sound more exciting but a soul is a souls in the eyes of the Lord no matter what color or race the person is. There are so many lost people in the U.S. today and they need people to preach to them, to befriend them and show them the love of Jesus. Countries around the world also need to know about Jesus and His precious mercy and grace for us.

This is the bottom line. Let us not confuse the world missionary with something that is exciting and exotic. It is a calling that for all Christians go wherever God leads them with the purpose of winning lost souls for the kingdom of God.

Samaritan Revival does home missionary work and foreign missionary work. Why? Because no matter where we are, we are going to be a witness for Jesus.

Philip Tyson

The Real Definition of a True Friend

Have you ever asked yourself what a true friend really is? Anything that is true, cannot be false. We know that truth last forever so why is it that true friends sometimes seem to be temporary. How much of our lives should we turn over to a friend? How much trust should we put into a friendship?

These are questions that many people have so let's talk about this a little and we will see what the Bible says about this. As a father, I would easily give my life for my children but would I give my life for a friend. Do I have friends that would give their lives for me.

The Lord Jesus Christ gave us the definition of a true friend: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you" (John 15:13-15). Jesus is the pure example of a true friend for He laid down His life for His "friends." What is more, anyone may become His friend by trusting in Him as their personal savior, being born again and receiving new life in Him.

There is an example of true friendship between David and Saul's son Jonathan, who in spite of his father Saul's pursuit of David and attempts to kill him, stood by his friend. You will find that story in 1 Samuel chapter 18 through chapter 20. Some pertinent passages are 1 Samuel 18:1-4; 19: 4-7; 20:11-17, 41-42.

Proverbs is another good source of wisdom regarding friends. "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Proverbs 17:17). "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). The issue here is that in order have a friend, one must be a friend. "Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses" (Proverbs 27:6). " As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" (Proverbs 27:17).

The principle of friendship is also found in Amos. "Can two walk together, except they be agreed" (Amos 3:3 KJV). Friends are of like mind. The truth that comes from all of this is a friendship is that relationship that is entered into by individuals, and it is only as good or as close as those individuals choose to make it. Someone has said that if you can count your true friends on the fingers of one hand, you are blessed. A friend is one whom you can be yourself with and never fear that they will judge you. A friend is someone that you can confide in with complete trust. A friend is someone you respect and that respects you, not based upon worthiness but based upon a likeness of mind.

Finally, the real definition of a true friend comes from the Apostle Paul: "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:7-8). "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends." (John 15:13). Now, that is true friendship!

No matter how many friends you have, Jesus is the greatest friend you can ever have. All you have to do is ask Him to be your friend and your savior. You can ask Him to come into your heart and He will never and I mean never forsake you.

New Worship Revival Center in Honduras

For some time, God has been laying on my heart a great burden. There is a city in Honduras called Choluteca. It has around 500,000 people and another 500,000 people in villages around the big city. Most of the churches in this city are in small buildings. God has laid on our heart to build a state of the art worship center. We want to call this the REVIVAL CENTER. This will be a place where churches from around the state can come and hold concerts, pastors conferences, youth conferences et. We are praying that God will give us $500,000 dollars in one year for this project. This amount seems impossible but with God all things are possible. If you would like to help us with this incredible project, please click the banner below.

Joan Tyson's trip to Spanish Wells

Dear Friends,

Mom and Stephany are in the states for three weeks. They just arrived from a mission conference held in Spanish Wells, Bahamas. Yes, you heard me right, the Bahamas. Only missionaries who have lasted over 40 years in the ministry get these type of meetings. I still have along way to go. The Lord really blessed while she was their. The People's Church in Spanish Wells have supported our ministry for many years. They sponsor a large number of children with the Opportunity of a Lifetime program and while mom was their, they sponsored around 12 more. These are the nicest people you will ever meet and let me tell you, they really know how to treat a missionary, unless you don't like eating lobster everyday and watching the sun go down over the ocean and laying back in a comfortable chair feeling the ocean breeze on your face. Let me get back to reality for a minute. Kidding aside, this was a wonderful conference and thank the Lord that when mom gets back to Honduras, their will be new children eating a good meal everyday and receiving a good education because of this church in the Bahamas.

Mom and Stephany will be leaving out for Gatlinburg after the elections for a women's meeting that is held each year. After that, they will be returning to Honduras to hold all the graduations of our schools including our Bible School. I wont tell you how old mom is because she will probably want pay me if I do but what I can tell you is that she just amazes me each day. She has more strength than me and Steve and she never stops. Now that Stephany is graduating, she is going to be a big help to mom. She is already learning how to run the finances so I guess me and Steve will be asking her to sign the checks one day. God is truly putting the puzzle together for the future of this ministry.

Steve is in Honduras translating for the mission groups. Glenhaven Baptist Church from McDonough, Ga just left Honduras and words cannot describe the blessing this church is to our ministry. This was the very first church that started supporting my father almost 40 years ago and they have been faithful ever since. They also support many of our ministries including many of the National Pastors in Honduras and Nicaragua. Thank the Lord for Glenhaven Baptist Church.

First Baptist Church of Loganville, Ga came in after the Glenhaven group and it just amazes me how God puts different burdens in the hearts of different churches. The members of this church sponsor at least 300 children in Honduras. The difference they have made in the lives of so many families will probably on be known in heaven.

Well, now that only leave poor old me. No Bahamas, No Ocean, No Fishing. Just good old Villa Rica. Don't feel sorry for me, the Golden Corral makes up for everything. Actually, while my wife and I have been waiting for our son to be born, God has opened up many new doors for the Samaritan Revival Group. I have received many phone calls and emails from churches who are booking the group for March of 2009. If you still have not had the Samaritan Revival group in your church, I can honestly say that you do know what you have missed. I received an email the other day saying that I brag to much but I just know that the spirit that is felt when the Samaritan Revival group sings is just amazing. To have a spanish group come into your church and sing beautiful Gospel music in spanish with the english words on a screen is such an amazing experience for any church. If you have never heard Midnight Cry in spanish, let me tell you that you will feel the Holy Spirit in a new way. If you would like to have the Samaritan Revival in your church, you can email me at philip@samaritanrevival.com or you can call me at 678-654-6391.

My daughter, Stephany, is part of the group and she will be traveling with us starting in March. Something tells me that Mom will also be with us also because you cannot separate them. Mom asked Stephany the other day a question that we thought was joke. She said "Stephany, when you get married, where is your husband going to sleep?" I don't think that she was joking.

Remember to visit our website at www.samaritanrevival.com- We have totally updated our website so take a look at it.

Please keep our ministry in your prayers. Please keep our country in your prayers. I know that I am limited on what I can say about the future of our country but what I can say is that GOD IS IN CONTROL and no matter what happens on election day, this is all part of the plan of God.

Your Brother in Christ,
Philip Tyson

Psalms 23 - A Beautiful little child's message

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

This passage is so precious and I found a video that I know will bless your heart.



The Bible says that if we only had faith as a little child. Thank you sweet child for blessing my heart.

Philip

Have you really listened to MERCYME

I am now 39 years old and next May, I will be 40. I have heard so much about the crisis that some people go through when they reach 40. This age seems to be a turning point in the life of many people. Many people seem to believe that if you have not accomplished anything by 40 then you are stuck.

I guess that is why I love the music of Mercyme. These guys are not young. They have been ministering for many years and until just a few years ago, they became extremely popular. I remember seeing a video of one of their concerts back many years ago when their lead singer, Bart, told the crowd to pray for them because they were going through some hard times. What really impresses me about this group is their testimony. They have wonderful families and they all seem to love each other.

A Reporter once asked the Bart, "Did the group start 10 years ago." Bart replied, I believe that God was already working inside of me even during High School, preparing me for this ministry. Can you imagine that even when he was in High School, God had placed a burden on his heart but they had to wait a huge amount of years before they really started touching people with their ministry. That is a long time to wait. So many times, we want everything done so quickly and if God does not bless us immediately, we give up. Look how many years Jacob, in the Bible, had to wait on this wife. Waiting is part of being a Christian because who are we to hurry up the Lord. We have to learn to have patience and wait on him.

In churches today, their is a huge controversy about what is contemporary and what is not. I do not even like that word contemporary because we, as christians, have placed that word into our book or dirty words. The question we should ask is "Is this Godly or not" and what I mean by Godly is, does this music bring people closer to God. Everyone has different taste in music and their nothing wrong with that so I will tell you that Mercyme has brought me closer to God. Their lyrics are so powerful and it goes right to the heart of a Christian.

Bart's father died many years ago and Mercyme wrote three songs that have helped me through some hard times. One is known by everyone, "I can only Imagine". If you have never heard then you really need to hear this song. If you have ever lost someone close to you then please listen to this song. They also wrote Homesick which also talks about being homesick for heaven. I am going to add a video to this blog of my Father which passed away last year with the song, I can only Imagine.



I could talk about Mercyme all day long but all I can say is that I thank the Lord for them. The Samaritan Revival Group sings many of their songs in spanish and these songs have blessed many spanish speaking people.

I will be writing about Casting Crowns next. They also have an incredible ministry.

Philip Tyson

A Nation in Need of Prayer

Today we all need to pray for our nation. We all need to pray for our Churches and for our families. The day has come when we should finally realize that without prayer, we will not survive. Even Jesus prayed to His Father in hard times and this should show us the importance of prayer.

Is prayer a daily priority in your life, or a last resort? No matter how you approach prayer, there is no time like the present to lift up our nation to the Lord. As a country, we have turned from following God; there is widespread failure to obey His commandments or live by biblical principles. Is it just coincidence that our morality suffers? Or that economically, we face one of the most difficult times since the Great Depression? Regardless of what caused our national condition, Christian citizens should care enough about their country to cry out to God on its behalf.

How much do you love your country? Are you willing to bend your knees and ask God for help. There are so many promises in the Word of God for those who are righteous and honor Him. Part of being righteous and following His commands is to pray for your leaders and people in authority. Pray that they would honor the Lord and seek His ways. Pray that they would govern in righteousness and integrity. And Psalm 33 tells us that, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” The Lord promises that when His people pray, He will hear us! As you submit all your ways to Him,He will cause you to rise up higher and higher into the place of blessing He has in store for you!

No matter what political party you may belong to, what is most needed is prayer for leadership in our local communities, in our state, in our nation, and in our world. As Christians, we have the incredible privilege of holding our leaders and potential leaders up in prayer. Leaders of today need Christians to be praying for them, encouraging them, and asking that God's wisdom would prevail as decisions are made, elections happen, and actions are taken. Christians are also to lead by example in being "ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men." Sometimes, we get caught up in one side or the other and forget that as Christians we are to exemplify acts of goodness, peace, consideration, kind words, and true humility. That is a pretty tall order, but it will keep us on track to do what God is calling us to do - call on Him and depend on Him for all of life's circumstances, especially in the area of leadership. No leader can lead with wisdom and effectiveness without God's help.

It is not just the U.S. that is in need of prayer but it is the world. Even Honduras has changed in the last four years. These changes are carrying the world down a dangerous path. When you read this, take a few minutes out of your time and sincerely pray that God's will be done.

Philip Tyson

Where in the world are the Christians

As the elections are coming closer to reality, I have asked myself, where in the world are the Christians. I am sure that all of you have turned on yout TV or opened a NEWSPAPER and all you read about is how wonderful Obama is and how he is winning in all the polls. Everyday it seems that he is getting even stronger and more popular.

Here is my question. How do I get someone to poll me? I have never been polled. No one has ever called me to ask me who I am going to vote for. Where are the pollsters getting their numbers? Who are they calling? Where do they get their list of people to call?

Please do not get upset that I am talking about this because I am not involved in politics and this is not a politcial blog. This is just questions that I have on my mind as an American Conservative Christian. I admit it, I am Conservative. I know that this is not a popular term today but how can I not be. I am a Christian. How can a true Christian not be Conservative. There are two types of Conservative Christians. On one hand, their are Christians who are Conservative in their Religious beliefs and on the other hand, their are Christians who are Conservative in their moral beliefs. I believe that both should go hand in hand but their is a division today when it comes to this issue.

I guess that I am tired of keeping my mouth shut about what I believe because I am afraid that someone is going to be offended by what I say. The liberals are not afraid to express their opinion and we should not be afraid to express ours. As you know, I believe that we should be sensitive toward others belief which means that we should respect what other people believe but that does not mean that we have to agree with them. It also means that we should not keep from expressing what we believe. Christians today should be more vocal about their views on the world, politics, and the future of our nations.

It used to be that atheist would keep their opinions to their self and as long as you did not bring up the subject of God, they would not say anything. Now, they are on TV and in Newspapers and Magazines expressing their opinions about a subject that they know nothing about. If you deny that God exist, you do not know God. These people want to live anyway they want, do whatever they want without any accountability from a higher power that reigns over them. That is the reason why they deny God.

Getting back on the subject, Christians today better come together and they better start praying. The situation in this country is in a big mess. We would be foolish to think that this is just something that has been made up or falsely created. America is in a crisis and a 700 billion dollar bailout is not the answer. Only God can help America now. We have to fall on our knees and start praying. Sarah Palin said something very important when she said "I Believe that Jesus is coming back in my lifetime". Those are very powerful words for someone that is running for public office. What this shows to me is that she is not going to give up her faith but a public position. You may not agree with everything she says or does but you have to give her credit for being bold about her belief in Jesus Christ.

How can Christians speak out? I wonder what would happen if every Christian had a Blog on the internet. Can you imagine how millions of blogs that would be? Billions of words being written and sent out around the world expressing their belief in Jesus Christ. Setting up a Blog is so easy today. You can just go to blogger.com and set one up for free. it does not even cost anything. We should also be honest to ourself and express what we truly believe. Be honest, be truthful, be bold. This do not mean that you should make an effort to offend others, please don't. You can express your views and if someone does not like it they just have to live with it but at least you are expressing your views.

To end, let me remind you of a story in the Bible. When Jesus was crucified, Peter was asked three times if he was a follower of Jesus and all three times he denied Christ. He was afraid for his life and later, he was convicted for what he had done. Le us not make that same mistake. Let's be bold about what we believe and let's stand up for a Christian America. Let's stand up for Jesus and for His second coming. Let's stand up for morality and find a way to get the word out.

I love America. I am proud to be an Americana and who ever wins the elections is not going to change that. But what I am most proud of is that fact that I am a Christian and I will never deny Christ and I will never stop trying to let everyone know that no matter what happens in this world, God does exist, God loves them, and God wants to them to be saved.

Being Politically Correct

I am sure that all of you have heard the phrase "Politically Correct". One of the definitions in the dictionary to this phrase is "Treating other people's religion, culture, etc. with sensitivity"

I think the main word in this definition is Sensitivity. What is sensitivity. The dictionary says that sensitivity is "The quality or condition of being sensitive".

In the world that we live in today, I wonder how many people are politically correct. You see, being politically correct has nothing to do with politics. I used to think that it did but it does not. If you really look at this the way I do, it really has to do with respecting other peoples views and treating those views with sensitivity. In other words, not attacking people just because they do not think the same way you do. That is really pretty hard to do for many people. I know people who think that their way is the only way and if you do not think the way they do then you are not fit to be a human being.

I know that this used to be wide spread back many years ago with the KKK and other groups like this but today you would think that all of this has changed. Well, it has not. It may not be about race as much as it used to be but let me tell you that it has sprung up in ways that will shock you. I am going to give you just a few examples of the lack of sensitivity that I have run into in my travels and while visiting many Churches in the U.S. First let me clarify that the majority of the Churches that I have visited are wonderful and the people treated us like family but there are always exceptions and some of our experiences are almost funny because they are so ridiculous. This will give you an idea on the different ways that people think today.

Sports is the cause of teen rebellion
I was in a church in North Carolina and a man came up to me and asked me if we has any sports programs in our schools in Honduras and Nicaragua. I told him that we had basketball, soccer and others. He looked at me and said that he was going to tell me a hidden secret and if we would implement this, we would save the lives of thousands of young people in our schools. He said that he has been studying for years the reason why teens rebel and many fall into drugs and alcohol. He said that he has traced the problem to SPORTS. At first I thought that he was joking but soon I found out he was totally serious. He said that Sports started out in Greece and this was the first country that the Olympic games were held and since the Greeks worshiped gods like Zeus and others, and since they invented sports then sports comes from the devil and as long as teens participate in sports then they will have the devil in them which will cause them to rebel. He said that any parent that allows their children to participate in sports is inviting the devil to enter their life. Are you shocked? I was, and I could not say a word. I just walked away.

Any String Instrument is not of God
Not to long ago, I visited a church with the Samaritan Revival Group. We asked the Pastor who we could give our sound tracks to so they could be cued and ready. The Pastor informed us that they did not believe in sound tracks. At first I was a little confused because I did not quite understand what he meant but I got the point. I told him that their was no problem. We had brought are string guitar and the group could play and sing. He suddenly looked into my eyes and said "String instruments are not from God. We only allow an Organ and a Piano on our platform." I know what you are thinking. I thought the same thing, You can not imagine how much I wanted to say "Brother, you better get your piano off the platform them because pianos are string instruments." You know i did'nt say that even though I wanted too. Eliu from our group also plays the piano beautifully so they played and sung for the congregation. Talking about being politically correct, this guy politically incorrect.

Wearing wire rim glasses
My father was about to preach in a church when he was still alive and just before he was going to go up to the pulpit to preach, the pastor said that they were proud that no one had ever preached in their church that wore wire rimed glasses. This is the funny part. Dad has on wire rim glasses and the Pastor had not noticed. Like a good missionary, dad took them off and he preached to the church. Where in the Bible does it say that wire rim glasses is a sin. I learned a big lesson from this and since I am half blind, I decided not to get into any problems and I either wear contacts of plastic rims. This is not a joke.

Last but not least You cannot show any emotion when you sing
This one really through me off guard and I had to respond to this one. After the Samaritan Revival group sung, a man told us that the group did a great job singing but they were doing something extremely wrong. If they did not change this, then the message of God was being watered down by theatrical a performance. I was shocked because I know that the Samaritan Revival group is not the best group in the world but something that do have is sincerity. These guys sing from their heart and they feel every word that is coming out of their mouth. The man said that when a person sings, their should be no expression on their face and no movement from their head or arms. If they do show expression, they are allowing singing to their self no to the congregation and God will not bless. This was one time that I said "Brother, I respect what you opinion and if you feel this way then that is fine but we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us and He guides us in a different way.

These are just some examples and I have no problem with people having different views. The problem occurs when people think that if you do not do things there way then you are a worldly person or you are not right with God. We do not have to agree with everyone but why cant we just respect and be sensitive toward other peoples views. That does not mean that we have to join up with them but we can respect them. No one is going to hell for playing sports. If you feel this way then that is fine but you should never judge someone just because they like sports. People have to understand that God has given us something called convictions, but not all convictions are from God. Many are man made.

My father taught me an important lesson. He said that are job was to preach the Gospel to the lost not to put down peoples religions. He said that our job is to preach the Word of God and then we the Holy Spirit does the rest. You can never get close to people if you start off by putting them down. We need to be sensitive toward others and we need to show love and compassion. This is just a thought. I wonder how many Christians today would of walked over and spoken to the Samaritan woman at the well knowing who she was and knowing her past? The disciples sure knew who she was and they did not want to have anything to do with her but Jesus did. Jesus was probably the only person in the whole town that showed kindness toward her and he did not judge her. What was the outcome? She went out and brought the whole town to hear Jesus preach.

I have changed so much in the last few years and I am sure that many disagree with me but I have learned that Love is something that God created and if Jesus showed love toward the ones that society had rejected then I am going to do the same.

You cant ever go wrong if you copy what Jesus did when he was on this earth.

Spanish Lyrics to Here with me by Mercyme sung by Samaritan Revival

Here with me - Yo siento su presencia

Señor abrázame cada día mas
Mirarte hoy aquí, tus manos sobre mi
Quiero verte, revélate a mi
Tu misericordia, me rindo ante ti

CORO
Yo siento tu presencia aquí en mi ser
Estoy perdido ante tu belleza
Puedo sentir tus manos sobre mi
En este momento yo me entrego a tu amor

Conmigo siempre estas
No siento soledad
Sanaste mi dolor
Tu perdón me alcanzo
Tu eres santo
Me rindo ante ti

CORO
Yo siento tu presencia aquí en mi ser
Estoy perdido ante tu belleza
Puedo sentir tus manos sobre mi
En este momento yo me entrego a tu amor

Yo me entrego a ti Señor
Yo me entrego a Jesús mi salvador

CORO
Yo siento tu presencia aquí en mi ser
Estoy perdido ante tu belleza
Puedo sentir tus manos sobre mi
En este momento yo me entrego a tu amor (bis)

This is Samaritan Revival recording Here with me in Spanish in Nashville, Tn

Spanish Lyrics to Spoken For by Mercyme Sung by Samaritan Revival

Spoken For - Su Palabra me Cambio

Mundo fuera de aquí
Ya no te ocupo mas
Ya tengo libertad
Jesús ya vive en mi
Oh yo te alabo
Oh yo me rindo a ti

CORO
Cubierto por divino amor
Jesús resucitó
Es dueño de mi corazón
Su palabra me cambio

Ahora tengo la paz
Que nunca conocí
Completo ya estoy
Su palabra me cambio
Oh yo te alabo
Oh yo me rindo a ti

CORO
Cubierto por divino amor
Jesús resucitó
Es dueño de mi corazón
Su palabra me cambio

Por el poder de la cruz
Perdido estaba yo
Y me hiciste tuyo
Redimido hoy estoy
Su palabra me cambio
Y todo por amor

CORO
Cubierto por divino amor
Jesús resucitó
Es dueño de mi corazón
Su palabra me cambio (bis)

Mundo fuera de aquí
Ya no te ocupo mas

This is Samaritan Revival singing Spoken For in Spanish

Spanish Lyrics to Who am I by Casting Crowns sung by Samaritan Revival

Who am I - Quien soy Yo

Quien soy yo
Que el Señor de la creación
Me quería conocer
Le importaba mi dolor

Quien soy yo
Que el sol en la mañana
Ilumine mi camino
De mi oscuro corazón

No es por lo que yo soy
Sino lo que has hecho en mi
No es por lo que hecho yo
Sino por quien eres tu

CORO
Yo soy una flor que decolora
Hoy aquí y sin mañana
La ola que sacuda el mar, vapor en el aire
Y así me escuchas si te llamo
Me cuidas cuando caigo
Me muestras quien yo soy

Tuyo soy, tuyo soy

Quien soy yo
Aunque miras mi pecado
Me miras con amor
Escuchas mi clamor

Quien soy yo
Que la voz que calma el mar
Hablaria por la lluvia
Calmando mi tempestad

No es por lo que yo soy
Sino lo que has hecho en mi
No es por lo que hecho yo
Sino por quien eres tu

CORO

Yo soy una flor que decolora
Hoy aquí y sin mañana
La ola que sacuda el mar, vapor en el aire
Y así me escuchas si te llamo
Me cuidas cuando caigo
Me muestras quien yo soy
Tuyo soy, tuyo soy

No es por lo que yo soy
Sino lo que has hecho en mi
No es por lo que hecho yo
Sino por quien eres tu

CORO

Yo soy una flor que decolora
Hoy aquí y sin mañana
La ola que sacuda el mar, vapor en el aire
Y así me escuchas si te llamo
Me cuidas cuando caigo
Me muestras quien yo soy

Tuyo soy, tuyo soy

A quien temeré, a quien temeré
Tuyo, soy

The Video Below is Samaritan Revival Recording WHO AM I in Nasville Tn.

Spanish Lyrics to Homesick by Mercyme sung by Samaritan Revival

Home Sick - Lejos de Mi Hogar

Estas en un lugar mejor,
me han dicho tantas veces
Y me gozo al saber que tu estas ahí
Y la razón de mi quebranto,
la razón que estoy llorando
Es por el tiempo,
que he de esperar para estar contigo

CORO
Cierro mis ojos y te puedo ver
Si mi hogar es donde estas,
aun no estoy en el
Dame las fuerzas Dios de poder esperar
Nunca he estado tan lejos de mi hogar

Ayúdame Señor a poder entender
Tal vez nunca lograre conocer tu proceder
Y aunque me mostrarás, el dolor será igual
Porque estoy aquí tan lejos de mi hogar

CORO
Cierro mis ojos y te puedo ver
Si mi hogar es donde estas,
aun no estoy en el
Dame las fuerzas Dios de poder esperar
Nunca he estado tan lejos de mi hogar

En Cristo no existe adiós
En Cristo no existe final
Me quedaré con Cristo
Y todo lo que soy,
Para volverte a ver
Para volverte a ver

CORO
Cierro mis ojos y te puedo ver
Si mi hogar es donde estas,
aun no estoy en el
Dame las fuerzas Dios de poder esperar
Nunca he estado tan lejos de mi hogar

This is Samaritan Revival Recording Homesick in Nasville, Tn

Honduras is becoming a socialist government

After experiencing the communist taking over Nicaragua in 1979 and after seeing them defeated in 1990, I never imagined that socialism would be returning to Central America.

Honduras is a country that I love and this is where I have spent most of my life.  Honduras as always been a friend to the United States and even when the Iraq war started, Honduras sent troops to help.  Now, the liberal party has taken over and Honduras has joined a new group started by Hugo Chavez called ALBA.  This group was promoted to the people in Honduras as a social organization that would use part of the earnings of the oil revenues from Venezuela to help the poor.  Some people bought into these lies.  El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama would not have anything to do with it but Honduras, Nicaragua joined.

The first thing that happened was, a rally was held in Tegucigalpa, Honduras with Hugo Chavez and Daniel Ortega.  I was about two miles from the rally and their were so many buses parked that you could not even drive on the roads.  The Honduran government had brought in over 100,000 people for this rally.  What they did not want any one to know was that they paid every person $27 dollars for assisting the rally so you can imagine how many poor people were there.

Hugo Chavez, Daniel Ortega, and Mel Zelaya which is the President of Honduras, spent two hours calling the United States every vulgar word you can imagine.  It made me sick at my stomach as I watched this on TV.  Why did I watch this?  Believe me, I live in a third world country and I need to know what is going on.

The next event that happened was a solidarity move.  The president of Bolivia, which is part of ALBA, kicked out the U.S. ambassador from Bolivia.  Hugo Chavez followed by doing the same. The U.S. embassy was in a transition with the ambassador and when the new ambassador came to Honduras to take his post, the Honduras government did not accept his credentials.  This means that Honduras would not recognize him as the ambassador.  When the president of Honduras was asked about this, he used the word solidarity.  He said that he was showing solidarity with his brothers, the president of Venezuela and Bolivia.  I think I left out that CUBA is also part of ALBA.

Here is the good news.  Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua has a popularity rating of only 24%.  Mel Zelaya of Honduras has a popularity rating of less than 20%.  This means that in a couple of years, their party will definitely lose the elections.

Let's just hope and pray and in the next couple of years, nothing really bad happens.

Philip

Samaritan Revival CD on CDBABY

We are so happy to have our Cd now being distributed by CDBABY.  Don't let the name fool you.  This is a major company who has led the way for Independent Artist throughout the world.  All you have to do is click the Banner and you are taken to CDBABY Samariatn Revival page where you can order our CD.  If you order one, the price is $12.97 but if you order more than one, you get a 40% discount.  

Our CD will now be in stores around the world and we know that God is going to bless us with this new venture.  Every CD that we sell, we are going to give one away to someone who cannot afford to buy a CD.  Why would we do this?  The reason is because our purpose is not to make money, it is to get music out to people that will touch their life in a spiritual way.

This month is full of concerts for us and we will be traveling throughout Honduras playing in different venues.  Please pray that God will touch hearts.

May God Bless you,

Philip

www.samaritanrevival.com

P.S. Be sure and click the banner to take a look at our CDBABY page.