All posts tagged: OpentheWord.org

A Full Moon, Lanterns, Torches, and Weapons! – OpentheWord.org

A Full Moon, Lanterns, Torches, and Weapons! – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. — John 18:3 By Rick Renner Have you ever had an experience with someone who had a wrong perception of you? When you heard what that person thought of you, were you shocked to hear it? Did you wonder, How could anyone ever think something like that about me? The more well-known you become, the more that people hear all kinds of rumors about you — most of which are completely untrue. You know how rumors work. When one person hears a rumor, he passes it along to another person, who then repeats it to someone else — and so it goes from one person to the next, growing more and more ridiculous with each telling. Finally, an entire story is being told that has no truth in it whatsoever; unfortunately, when people hear it, they believe it! This is one reason Christians need to be very careful not to participate in gossip. …

Are You in the First Generation? – OpentheWord.org

Are You in the First Generation? – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Gen worship night at Eastside Christian Church in Anaheim, California Credit: Tajmia Loiacono, Unsplash.com Do you belong to a religion? Are you a member of a religious group? Those two questions are really two ways of asking the same thing. So, they make up question one. And here is question two: Why? I’m not trying to start a religious argument, but I believe that we should all examine ourselves and ask, “How did I become this person?” This can be a healthy exercise. For example, do you have strong personal convictions, or do you simply follow your family’s traditions? Our modern culture is experiencing a huge movement, and it is changing the whole world. Old family traditions are weakening and modern ideas are taking their place. Brace yourself: this is a cultural revolution. Here is one example: Have you heard of the best selling book Bad Mormon? Let me explain. I am writing as a Christian, and I disagree with the Mormons on several issues. However, I am not trying to criticize or argue with …

Doctor Declares Man’s Healing as ‘Nothing Short of a Miracle’ – OpentheWord.org

Doctor Declares Man’s Healing as ‘Nothing Short of a Miracle’ – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

In his book, The Angels Among Us, scheduled for release in November, Dr. Marc Siegel said that a survey of medical doctors found that 70 percent believe in God, while 55 percent said they had witnessed a miracle in their practice. So it shouldn’t surprise us that Dr. Forrest Moore described Gabe Poirot’s remarkable healing as “nothing short of a miracle”, according to CBN. Moore is the vice chief of surgery at the hospital where Gabe was taken after suffering a traumatic brain injury while riding his electric skateboard. Gabe, who wasn’t wearing a helmet, was skateboarding with a friend, John Michael, when he hit something in the road and was sent headfirst into the pavement. He immediately lost consciousness, but something unusal happened. Gabe said that his spirit left his body. As he soared upward, he looked down and saw his friend John praying for him. Gabe said he was then drawn toward a light above him. “I immediately knew that I was being suctioned up to an appointment with Him,” Gabe said. “It …

Could you live there? – OpentheWord.org

Could you live there? – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Do you believe in something—anything? Most of us do. I am writing from a Christian perspective. Do you ever attend meetings with other people who share your beliefs? Do you wear a team T-shirt or hat, or display a bumper sticker on your car? Imagine if the system or religion you believe in was illegal. Imagine that if you ever got caught, you could be killed, or possibly sent to a hard-labor camp and worked to death. Do I seem ridiculous when I say these things? Does it sound as though I am describing a strange video game or a bad science-fiction movie? Did you know that there are places in the world where all the things that I just described are true? Millions of people in our modern world practice their faith in secret. When the secret comes out, they usually die, quickly or slowly. I remember a story from more than ten years ago about Christians from the African country of Eritrea, which used to be a part of Ethiopia. The government of …

Who wins on the Internet? – OpentheWord.org

Who wins on the Internet? – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Be careful! When I was young, people had strong opinions about many things, and they said what they thought. But they didn’t put many of those opinions in writing. I want to be very careful with my words, while still trying to say things that are important. We can easily be held accountable for things that we put in writing, especially on the Internet, where those words are not easily be erased. Words are very dangerous these days. Imagine this: Somewhere, I think in Canada, someone had an opinion about crosswalks that are painted in with rainbow colors. You have probably seen this somewhere. The rainbow colors are a symbol of the LGBTQIA+ movement. (There may be other letters and symbols after LGBTQ, but that is the most complete statement I can find with an Internet search.) When I was young, we used the word “gay” — and some nastier names. Now, back to the story. The person who criticized the rainbow crosswalks is now facing serious charges in court. But by the same logic, …

Are we there yet? – OpentheWord.org

Are we there yet? – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

“AI”, Artificial Intelligence, is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as “The capacity of computers or other machines to exhibit or simulate intelligent behaviour; the field of study concerned with this.” My definition would never make it to a dictionary, but AI is software that can think, and maybe generate more software, and that might be bad news for computer programmers who work in software development. AI is a revolution in our modern world, and it will probably change the way we live. For example, teachers don’t always know who or what wrote the homework assignments that students hand in. Did they get a good grade for something written by an AI program, or are they just very good writers? This might be a new idea for most of us, but AI is starting to impact cultures around the world. One news story that interested me was from the African country of Kenya. That is a place that I have visited, and I know that education, with qualifying exams, is an important part of life there. …

Las iglesias evangélicas en Brasil crecen un 543% en 30 años – OpentheWord.org

Las iglesias evangélicas en Brasil crecen un 543% en 30 años – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Estatua del Cristo Redentor, Río de Janeiro, Brasil. Crédito: Artyominc/Wikipedia/Creative Commons 3.0 ENGLISH: Evangelical Churches in Brazil Surge 543% in 30 Years Con una población de 214 millones de habitantes, Brasil es el séptimo país más grande del mundo. Encuestas recientes indican que el Espíritu Santo se está moviendo en el país, ya que más del 25% de los brasileños se identifican como cristianos evangélicos. Esto fue confirmado por un estudio realizado por el Centro de Estudios de la Metrópolis (CEM) de la Universidad de São Paulo, según informa Evangelical Focus. El CEM señaló que en 1990 había apenas 7.033 iglesias evangélicas en Brasil, pero ese número aumentó a 109.566 en 2019. Esto representa un incremento del 543% en ese período de 29 años. También significa que casi 10 nuevas iglesias evangélicas abrían sus puertas cada día durante ese período. El grupo cristiano de mayor crecimiento en Brasil es el de los pentecostales y carismáticos. Representan más de la mitad de las iglesias (56%), con 48.711 que se declaran pentecostales y otras 12.825 que se clasifican …

Humility Found to be Key to Effective Leadership – OpentheWord.org

Humility Found to be Key to Effective Leadership – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Leaders who want to grow, signal to followers that learning, growth, mistakes, uncertainty and false starts are normal and expected in the workplace, and this produces followers and entire organizations that constantly keep growing and improving. “Humility is the fear of the Lord; its wages are riches, honor, and life.” -Proverbs 22:4 By Jacqueline Ghosen    (Buffalo, NY)—Humble leaders are more effective and better liked, according to a study forthcoming in the Academy of Management Journal. “Leaders of all ranks view admitting mistakes, spotlighting follower strengths and modeling teachability as being at the core of humble leadership,” says Bradley Owens, assistant professor of organization and human resources at the University at Buffalo School of Management. “And they view these three behaviors as being powerful predictors of their own as well as the organization’s growth.”  Owens and co-author David Hekman, assistant professor of management at the Lubar School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, asked 16 CEOs, 20 mid-level leaders and 19 front-line leaders to describe in detail how humble leaders operate in the workplace and how …

Was It Spiritual Warfare at 30,000 feet? Jonathan Cahn Discusses the Battle that Resulted in a Man Being Duct-taped to His Airline Seat – OpentheWord.org

Was It Spiritual Warfare at 30,000 feet? Jonathan Cahn Discusses the Battle that Resulted in a Man Being Duct-taped to His Airline Seat – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

You may have seen a recent photo of a 67-year-old man duct-taped to a seat on a passenger jet after allegedly attacking a passenger. My wife saw it and thought it was AI, but it was very real. The American Airlines flight from Dallas to Newark was forced to divert to Baltimore because of the incident. In a recent YouTube video, prominent Christian author and speaker, Jonathan Cahn, said he was the one who was attacked. Cahn was travelling home after doing interviews with the 700 Club and CBN about his newly released book, The Altar of Pergamon: The Mystery of the Dark Angel & the Future of the World. At the last minute, Cahn’s seat got changed and he ended up sitting in first class with a man who initially was very friendly. Cahn said in recent years he has experienced spiritual attacks whenever he releases a new book and was actually expecting something similar after the release of his latest book two days earlier. But he was not expecting the way it happened …

An Apparent Lack of Thirst in America – OpentheWord.org

An Apparent Lack of Thirst in America – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Man standing in front of the Korbu Waterfall By Holly Meade    Water. It’s crucial to sustaining life. Scientists differ in opinions regarding the number of days we can survive without water; however, it is a fact we will die without it. Of course, on a hot day, or after exercising, or eating salty foods, it’s easy to crave a refreshing glass of water. In fact, our thirst for water can become a preoccupation until it’s satisfied. Consider an analogy between our thirst for water and our thirst for God. Do we thirst for a relationship with God as we thirst for water? According to a survey by veteran researcher George Barna of the Barna Research Group, the answer seems to “no.” When Barna surveyed more than 30,000 randomly selected adults about their faith, he reports that two out of three U.S. adults consider themselves “Casual Christians.” In other words, sixty-six percent of the adult population describe themselves as spiritually middle-of-the-road and even ambivalent about their faith. “Casual Christianity,” states Barna, is faith in moderation. …