The What Ifs - Now Think On This by Steve Martin

The What Ifs

Now Think On This

Steve Martin

"…looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2, NKJV)

We all have asked the “What if?” questions. Usually they come after a major tragedy in our life, or before a long anticipated event is about to happen, and we start asking the question.

Our son was involved in a single car accident very recently, resulting in the hospital ER and the ICU; with one surgery completed and another yet to come. On top of that, no insurance was in place by him to cover anything. No auto coverage except the bare bones, and no medical insurance either. It didn’t take long for the “What if” questions to start coming, both of those that came inwardly to our minds and the ones that came from without, from others who heard of the tragedy.

After seeing the mangled 2009 Hyundai Elantra he had been driving, just bought the week before, at its final towed location, the questions really started to flow in my brain.

“What if he had hit that tree head on?”

“What if there had been a passenger on that side, which took the major blunt of the horrible wreck?”

“What if another vehicle had been coming head on the other side of the median which he had crossed over during that midnight moment, which normally has much traffic on that city street?”

More and more they came, as further observations were made of Ben lying in the hospital bed fully sedated, the vehicle and the tree.

But then there was the tree. We most certainly know of the other tree, the one which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ hung on, to save us from the world which seeks to kill and destroy, and the eternal damnation hereafter for those with no hope.

Paul put it this way, “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the Messiah has not been raised; and if the Messiah has not been raised, then what we have proclaimed is in vain; also your trust is in vain; furthermore, we are shown up as false witnesses for God in having testified that God raised up the Messiah, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.

For if the dead are not raised, then the Messiah has not been raised either; and if the Messiah has not been raised, your trust is useless, and you are still in your sins. Also, if this is the case, those who died in union with the Messiah are lost.

If it is only for this life that we have put our hope in the Messiah, we are more pitiable than anyone. But the fact is that the Messiah has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a man, also the resurrection of the dead has come through a man.” (1 Cor 15:13-22, Complete Jewish Bible)

So I am most grateful for the “what” that did occur. I am most grateful that our son’s life was spared, to fulfill the call on his life which began 37 years ago at birth. I am most grateful for the uncertainties that will become certainties – being certain because His Lord still has him in the palm of His hand, directing his steps along the way, using His guardian angels to cover the missteps with their protection assignments on that path.

Both Ben, Laurie and I and his family will face a lot of “what ifs” in the coming days, but we are standing on solid ground that our Lord Jesus’ grace, provision and assurance will always be ours, as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

The “what ifs” have, and will yet to be, the completed “See what the Lord has done.”

For this and all things we certainly give thanks to the Lord for His abundant grace and His ongoing mercy and love daily in each of our lives.

You can be certain of that too.

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Founder

Love For His People, Inc.

  

P.S. I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. They might need it. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve

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Now Think On This - In the Year of our Lord 02.04.17 - #274 – “The What Ifs” – Saturday 8:30 am

All previous editions of Now Think On This can be found on this Blog, and on the website: Now Think On This

Again, I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve

Hospital halts abortions after every single doctor refused to commit them - CALVIN FREIBURGER LIVE ACTION NEWS

Hospital halts abortions after every single doctor refused to commit them

 MAY 31, 2016 CALVIN FREIBURGER LIVE ACTION NEWS

Abortions have come to an end at Specialist Hospital Pro-Familia in Rzeszów, Poland, after all the hospital’s gynecologists signed a conscience clause opting out of committing the procedure.

The decision affirms that abortion, the killing of an innocent child, is not health care, but a violation of the role of doctors to heal and not harm.

Abortion is illegal in Poland except to save a mother’s life, or in cases of rape or genetic abnormalities, although controversy arose on January 14, when midwife Agata Rejman exposed the hospital for committing abortions two years ago, Rzeszow News reports.

Hospital management threatened to sue Rejman if she did not retract her statements, but pro-lifers protested the hospital to support Rejman. The hospital also filed criminal and civil charges against two of the protesters for characterizing abortion as killing, thereby harming its reputation and business, though the criminal court cleared them of wrongdoing.

Now SHPF has ceased abortions, effectively ending the controversy, although hospital director Radoslaw Skiba denies the conscience signatures convinced management to change. Natalia Dueholm reported for LifeSiteNews:

The first reason for the change is associated with the 2015 decision of the Constitutional Court giving doctors the right to sign the conscience clause. Another reason is linked with the owners and experiences of a Pro-Familia sister hospital located in Łódź. Professor Dariusz Borowski, who owns the second Pro-Familia, admitted that “there were discussions on the subject. We showed which way would be just and brave.” Ultimately, Pro-Familia in Rzeszów followed the lead of her sister-hospital, which has a long and fruitful relationship with a local perinatal hospice run by Fundacja Gajusz.

Nevertheless, Polish pro-lifers are taking the case as a sign for hope. “One Pro-familia doctor thought back then that abortions should be performed in every hospital in Poland,” Mariusz Dzierżawski of Poland’s Right to Life Foundation noted, but “if the hospital most aggressive against pro-life activists can stop killing the unborn, then any and every hospital can and should do it. Only courage and perseverance are needed.”

Terrorism in Israel: Is a Baby a Worthy Target? - HAIM SHINE/FOR ISRAEL HAYOM CHARISMA NEWS

An Israeli man stands next to the scene where a motorist rammed into a bus stop, injuring at least nine people before he was shot dead in Jerusalem, according to Israeli police Dec. 14, 2015. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)

Terrorism in Israel: Is a Baby a Worthy Target?

12/16/2015 HAIM SHINE/FOR ISRAEL HAYOM  charisma news

Stabbing and ramming will never put out the flame of Jewish liberty in the land of Israel—we will always get back on our feet.

A 15-month-old baby is waiting with his mother at a bus stop in the entrance to Jerusalem. Suddenly, from the depth of a diabolic soul, a car plows into a group of people, injuring 14 of them, including the baby and his mother. The wounded were rushed to the hospitals and the wailing sirens of the ambulances and police cars had broken our hearts.

The assailant also had an ax in his possession, but due to resourceful civilians, he was not been able to complete his vicious task. No ax could ever sever our tree of life in our homeland.

The hospital reported that the toddler is in serious condition and had sustained a leg injury. It is vital that our enemies know that no matter how many times they will injure our legs, we will always get back on our feet.

In Deuteronomy 28:50, our worst and most brutal enemy is described as "a nation with a fierce countenance, which will not respect the old or show favor to the young."

This is an accurate depiction of our enemies: savages who glorify death without any moral compass to prevent them from hurting babies, women, the elderly and anyone who happens to cross their path.

Their main objective is to kill Jews and become heroes of the society they were brought up in. A society that cherishes death shall have no life.

At the beginning of the terror wave, it was believed that this was an unusual, unorganized activity. Today, three months later, it is clear that the assailants are messengers of their religious and political leadership.

The majority of the Palestinian society supports these murderous acts and admires its perpetrators. Shahids are not lone wolf terrorists; they grow in ugly beds that keep nourishing them with a bloody ideology.

The ongoing wave of terror and its foreseen expansion makes it perfectly clear that Palestinians have decided that, for them, the ultimate solution is one country from Jordan to the sea—sans Jews. Not a country alongside Israel but rather in its place. The two-state solution is no longer relevant.

The historical battle between the national movements, the old and the new, is escalating. The victor will be the side with the most determination, bravery and perseverance. Anyone in their right mind knows the outcome, so the Palestinian people better wake up before it is too late for them.

For 2,000 years the Jewish people had dreamed of returning to the land of Israel, and it was a difficult dream to realize. Jerusalem had stood in the center of that dream as a beacon of light spreading golden beams.

We are the fortunate ones: The last generation of exile and the first generation of the redemption. Against all odds, we have returned to Jerusalem, which is becoming a glorious city of beauty and splendor. The land of Israel, which was once a desert wasteland, has blossomed into a flourishing garden in the hands of the returnees to Zion. Vineyards were planted and houses were built on the rugged mountains of Judea and Samaria.

Stabbings and rammings will never put out the flame of the Jewish liberty in the land of Israel. "In that day it will be said to Jerusalem: 'Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands be slack" (Zeph. 3:16). 

Dr. Haim Shine writes a regular column for Israel Hayom. For the original article, visit israelhayom.com.

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Exclusive: "Heaven Is For Real" - First Thoughts after Screening the Movie - Aimee Herd - Breaking Christian News

Aimee Herd - Breaking Christian News:

Exclusive: "Heaven Is For Real" - 
First Thoughts after Screening the Movie

Aimee Herd-Opinion (Feb 19, 2014)

It's a movie that spurs the all-important dialogue that is always in the back of our minds (if not the forefront)—whether a Believer or not—which is: "Is Heaven real?"

I found Todd Burpo's NY Times best-selling book, "Heaven Is For Real," to be a very down-to-earth account of his son, Colton's experiences while lingering between this life and Heaven, and how he—as a pastor—reconciled what his son described with his own beliefs. (Graphic: "Heaven Is For Real" official movie poster)

But, when I heard they were making a movie out of the book, I admit I was afraid of the "hokey factor" that seems to have accompanied many faith-based films in the past.

Last night, I attended a private screening for "Heaven Is For Real" which will be released on April 16th—just in time for the Easter weekend.

If you're not familiar with the true story of what happened with the Burpos, here's a quick synopsis...

Todd Burpo is the pastor of a small-town church in America's heartland, where he lives with his wife Sonja; daughter, Cassie and son, Colton, who was just 3 at the time. A sudden and severe illness lands Colton in the hospital, and as he hovers between life and death, his family and church friends cry out to God on his behalf.

(Photo: Connor Corum and Greg Kinnear as Colton and Todd Burpo)

Colton recovers, quite miraculously, and a short time after, he begins to share matter-of-factly with his parents, some of what he experienced when 'his body' was in the hospital, and he was 'somewhere else.' What he tells his family, and others who will listen, changes everything.

The acting in "Heaven Is For Real" was excellent, in my opinion. Greg Kinnear plays Todd Burpo; Kelly Reilly plays his wife Sonja; and Connor Corum is an amazing child actor, aptly playing the role of Colton Burpo.

(Photo: Kelly Reilly as Sonja Burpo)

This cast, along with 'church friends,' Margo Martindale and Thomas Haden Church, are completely believable and all seem to operate in that magical place of "I forgot they were acting."

Under the direction of Randall Wallace (think "Braveheart"), the story of Colton describing his time in "Heaven" was expertly told, and in a very heartfelt, human way, in which we can all relate.

As Todd Burpo hears from his son, the extremely specific details about Heaven, he is suddenly faced with his own lack of belief, and just how to deal with that as a pastor.

However, the more Colton shares about his time spent with Jesus, and the others he met during his experience; the more those who hear it are changed by what it means to each of them.

(Photo: Connor Corum as 'Colton')

The movie dialog contains no expletives that I can remember, and I only felt the "hokey meter" begin to register a bit during the scenes (which were very brief) that depicted Heaven, and a few angels. Perhaps a few too many clouds—but seriously, what do I know? Maybe there are a lot of clouds there! (It just seemed slightly cliché at that point.)

But on the other hand, how does one portray Heaven with special effects and have it not feel somewhat hokey? I do like the way they kept Jesus' face somewhat silhouetted until the very end, when child-prodigy artist Akiane's "Jesus" portrait is revealed. (That was the only picture of the Lord that Colton said was accurate.)

On the whole, I would highly recommend "Heaven Is For Real," especially if you read and loved the book—but even if you didn't. Above all, it's the great love of God that is communicated through this film. (Photo: The 'real' Burpo family)

It's a movie that spurs the all-important dialogue that is always in the back of our minds (if not the forefront)—whether a Believer or not—which is: "Is Heaven real?"

And then, "If Heaven is real...how does that change how I live my life now?"

"Heaven Is For Real" releases in about 2,500 theaters across the country on Wednesday, April 16th.

To watch the official trailer, and for more information about the movie, Click Here.

Aimee Herd for Breaking Christian News

www.breakingchristiannews.com

Couple Flees Syria, Seeks Help in Israel

Wednesday, January 22, 2014 |  Israel Today Staff  

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A young Syrian couple with a tragic story did the unthinkable last week and turned to Israel, their sworn enemy, for help after it became clear they would find nothing but death and destruction in their own country.

Having been raised to believe the Jewish state was a blood-thirsty nation that hates all Arabs, the couple was shocked by the reality.

The couple's story, as reported by Israel Hayom, begins in their small village near the town of Daraa in southwestern Syria, just north of the border with Jordan.

Two months ago, the wife, who is only 23, gave birth to the couple's first child, a little girl. Sadly, the infant fell ill, and the couple was unable to leave their village for a nearby hospital because of military blockade imposed on the area. With no way out, the couple returned home and watched their precious baby succumb to the sickness and die.

The couple's situation went from tragic to worse two weeks ago when government forces began bombarding their village in order to root out rebel fighters. The girl's brother, who was one of those rebels, compelled the couple to flee the village. As they made their way out, the brother was shot and killed by government troops before his sister's eyes.

The couple, themselves wounded by the gunfire, returned to the village and were treated at a makeshift field hospital. But their injuries continued to worsen to the point that the girl's cousin smuggled them out of the village and to the border with Israel.

"We were surprised by the welcome and the treatment we received upon entering Israel," she told the newspaper.

The girl, whose identity was kept secret, continued: "We were afraid to come to Israel. They educated us to hate [Israel]. They taught us that this nation is a cruel enemy, but we found the reality to be different. People here have a conscience. Our enemy is in Syria, not in Israel. I wish we could stay here."

For now the couple is hospitalized at Poriyah Hospital near the Galilee town of Tiberias. As Israel Hayom reported, they can't stop hugging one another and crying over what they have gone through. But at least they are safe, and have come to find a compassionate benefactor where before they thought was only an enemy.

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Miraculous Healing in Jesus Stuns Israelis

Sunday, January 05, 2014 |  David Lazarus  

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When Therese Daoud arrived at Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital with a huge cancerous tumor, doctors said her only chance of survival would be to amputate the leg. What happened during the following months has left the medical staff and the nation speechless.

“If someone had told me the story of what happened to Therese, I would have said they are crazy and sent them to a mental hospital,” said Professor Yaakov Bickels, head of the Orthopedic- Oncology Department at the hospital. “But I was there. I saw it with my own eyes.”

What the professor saw he described as a malignant tumor “the size of an orange.” The biopsy showed a sarcoma. “This is one of the most aggressive and terrifying of all cancerous tumors,” Bickels explained. “With a tumor developed to this degree, the only treatment we could offer Therese was to amputate her leg.”

“I was in shock when the doctors told me,” said Therese, a junior high school science teacher. “I thought he was talking about someone else. But I had no choice. I began to prepare myself for life with one leg.”

Therese sent lab tests and x-rays to the USA to double check, but they came back with the same prognosis. The leg must be amputated to save her life.

On the day of surgery, after waiting in the hospital for three days, Therese was informed that because of “technical difficulties” the operation must be rescheduled. When she went back for the rescheduled surgery, just as she was about to be wheeled into the operating theater, Therese was told again, “the amputation must be postponed.” This time the surgical units were unavailable due to a number of emergency cases. By the time Therese got another date for surgery, her mother had become very sick, and Therese decided to herself postpone the operation in order to take of her mother.

For most of us, postponing a life saving surgery would have been overwhelming. Not for Therese. “Three times the surgery was delayed,” she said. “This was a clear sign to me from heaven that I should not have the surgery.” Israeli TV showed images of Therese praying in a church in the north of the country.

“When she told me that she had decided not to have the leg amputated, it was clear to me. She would soon die,” contemplated Prof. Bickels. “I was sorry about her decision.”

Three months later, a huge smile on her face, Therese walked unaided into Bickels’ office. “What happened to you?” he asked. “I prayed,” she responded.

Stunned, Bickels immediately sent Therese for an MRI, but the results were undeniable. The killer growth had receded dramatically. “This just does not happen,” stammered the professor. “A growth of this kind cannot not recede like this.”

Doctors and nurses could not believe the results, so they sent for another biopsy. But to no avail. There was no cancer. It had completely left her body. “We kept checking her records over and over,” said an astonished Bickels. “We just could not accept that the cancer had gone without any treatment.”

Israeli new stations have been reporting on the miracle and all admit that it is impossible to explain what happened to Therese, other than the power of her faith.

Hospital staff and reporters even traveled to Therese’s home to look for some other explanation. They tasted the food she eats and checked the water she drinks, but there was no physical explanation. They left pointing to the one undeniable, unavoidable and very uncomfortable option – that prayer in Yeshua, the Messiah of Israel, still heals today.

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