Author: Thor Page 157 of 158

How to Get Into Heaven – Something Funny!

On November 20, 2009

closed due to rapture

How to Get Into Heaven

A man dies and meets the gatekeeper at the Pearly Gates.The gatekeeper says to the man, “Here’s how it works. You need to have one hundred points to get into heaven. You tell me about all the good things you’ve done. They are all worth a certain number of points. If your total is one hundred or more, you can come in.”

“Well,” says the man. “I was happily married to the same woman for 52 years. I never looked at another woman. I was attentive and loved her dearly.”

“That’s great,” says the gatekeeper. “That’ll be two points.”

“Hmmm,” says the man. “This is going to be harder than I thought. Well, I attended church regularly, volunteered my time and tithed faithfully.”

“Wonderful,” says the gatekeeper, “That’s worth another point.”

“One point!” says the man. “Okay, okay. I was involved with a prison ministry for twenty-five years. I went into the prison, at least monthly, and shared Jesus with them.”

“Wow!” says the gatekeeper. “That’s another two points!”

“Only two points!” says the man. “At this rate, it’ll be by the grace of God that’ll I’ll ever get into this place.”

“Bingo!” says the gatekeeper. “That’s one hundred points! Come on in.”

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of ourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:8-10 (New King James Version)

source: from my inbox

A Taste of Hell

By Thor

On November 14, 2009

In christian articles

Have you tasted Hell? Look no more, go to New Zealand!

I love New Zealand. The Land of the Long White Clouds. Greener than where I am now here in Sydney, Australia. Famous for its white sand and clean beaches, millions of sheep, outdoor adventures, rugby (I’m a fan of the All Blacks), fishing spots, and home of Sir Edmund Hillary, first man to conquer Mt Everest. New Zealand was my home for the past six years and I can say, it’s a country of friendly Kiwis – both the bird (kiwi) and the people. New Zealand has a very Godly National Anthem. The first stanza goes like this:

God of nations! at Thy feet

In the bonds of love we meet,

Hear our voices, we entreat,

God defend our Free Land.

Guard Pacific’s triple star,

From the shafts of strife and war,

Make her praises heard afar,

God defend New Zealand

I went to New Zealand last month and as I was driving in town, I found this bizarre looking shop. A black painted building with a sign of Hell. Fiery flames. Demon’s tail. Little demons. A 0800 number 666! Their website says this:

Hell Pizza is a 666% original concept founded by Callum Davies in Wellington, New Zealand. Since 2003 the “unholy trinity” have taken NZ by storm spreading Hell fire throughout New Zealand, then to London, Brisbane (Australia), and soon to open in Dublin (Ireland) and Vancouver (Canada)! …. See you in Hell!

I don’t know about you but for me hell is really a very serious matter to talk about. It makes me think like hell! If you’re in a fight, you say “Go to hell!”If you’re going through marriage break-up or divorce, you say “You’re going through in hell”. And if you feel disgusted and annoyed, you say “What the hell is going on!”These are just minor demonstrations of hell. God’s Word tells us that hell is a place of eternal torment – an irreversible destination!

A fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:50). A place where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:48). A place where one shall be tormented with fire and brimstone (Revelation 14:10). It was designed originally for Satan and his demons (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).

Revelation 14:11 also tells us that “the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever and they have no rest day and night”. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelations 20:15) – the second death! Is your name written in the Book of Life?

It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. Heaven or hell is a conscious choice, a decision. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him (Jesus) should not perish but have everlasting life. It is God’s desire that all men shall be saved. He provided THE ONLY WAY to be saved and that is through His son, Jesus Christ. That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved (Romans 9:10-11). Also, Acts 4:12 tells us “Nor is there alvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” – the name of Jesus!

Going back to the pizza, I dare not try it. Pizza Hut or Domino’s? Anything, as long as it’s not from Hell. And my friend, if you want me to pray for you and lead you to a simple yet powerful prayer to avoid the gates of hell, feel free to drop me a line.

Thoughts on Personal Development

By Thor

On November 12, 2009

In Headline

I came across an article entitled “The Power of Personal Development”. It’s written by Jeffrey Gitomer and was published in the SUCCESS Magazine. He mentioned about Orison Swett Marden, one of the founders of SUCCESS magazine.

According to Gitomer, Marden have authored more than 40 books and was a leading positive-attitude genius of the 20th century. He was well-known before 1930. He was a founding father of personal development and positive thought. I must admit that I never heard about Marden until I read the above article. I am particularly interested in the words of wisdom that was mentioned. The thoughts are really brilliant, direct, and honest. It’s one of those meaty parts of a written work that I can’t wait to swallow it up and meditate its taste to my heart’s content.

Here are a few of Marden’s words of wisdom from the book he wrote in 1908, “He Who Thinks He Can”:

“Every child should be taught to expect success.”

“The man who has learned the art of seeing things looks with his brain.”

“The best educated people are those who are always learning, always absorbing knowledge from every possible source and at every opportunity.”

“People do not realize the immense value of utilizing spare minutes.”

“No substitute has ever yet been discovered for honesty.”

“Poverty is of no value except as a vantage ground for a starting point.”

Who is Orison Swett Marden?

The son of poor parents, he was born in 1850 in Thornton Gore, a New Hampshire hamlet, to Lewis and Martha Marden. His father was a farmer, hunter, and trapper. His mother stayed home and took care of Orison and his two sisters. Orison was a mere 3 years old when his mother died at the age of twenty-two. Though his father was devastated by the loss he did his best to raise his three children and provide for them their basic needs. An unfortunate accident occured in which his father was seriously injured by a fallen tree trunk while setting a bear trap. Soon after the accident Lewis passed away and was buried along side his wife Martha… Read more

Photo from: http://www.infusebooks.com/marden/orison_swett_marden.htm

ATTITUDE

By Thor

On November 6, 2009

In christian articles

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company… a church… a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past… we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude… I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.

And so it is with you… we are in charge of our attitudes.

Article written by: Charles Swindoll

Nobel winner Slams Bible as 'handbook of bad morals'

By Thor

On November 5, 2009

In Headline

This is appalling. Calling God’s word, the Bible, a “handbook of bad morals”? How could Saramango say that? Did he read the “right” Bible? What’s his motive?

Of course, he is entitled to his opinion. All I can say is this: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)

—o00o—

LISBON (AFP) – A row broke out in Portugal on Monday after a Nobel Prize-winning author denounced the Bible as a “handbook of bad morals”.

Speaking at the launch of his new book “Cain”, Jose Saramago, who won the 1998 Nobel Prize for Literature, said society would probably be better off without the Bible.

Roman Catholic Church leaders accused the 86-year-old of a publicity stunt.

The book is an ironic retelling of the Biblical story of Cain, Adam and Eve’s son who killed his younger brother Abel.” Read full story here

PHOTO : José Saramago receiving his Nobel Prize from the hands of His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden at the Stockholm Concert Hall, 10 December 1998.Copyright © FLT-Pica 1998,SE-105 17 Stockholm, Sweden,Telephone: +46-8-13 52 40 Photo: Anders Wiklund. From http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1998/saramago-photo.html