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.