Hello World! This Blog Mission Statement

Having been on Earth for about forty five years now, I have heard some amazing personal experiences (and had my own) in the way of God and Christ. I started this blog so that people can read about some of these experiences and even share their own.

Experiences have been known to be very personal and solo and yet there are other experiences, like those at Fatima, that involve a multitude of experiencers.

So, if you have come to this blog looking for inspiration from others or are looking to share your very own, welcome! My name is Brad. I run this blog. Feel free tor each out to me anytime.

A Dream in Which God Showed Me Something

This dream occurred a few nights ago and for some reason I didn’t write it down until now. Usually I like to record dreams that I find to be powerful or significant right away so that I don’t lose any detail.

In this dream, God permitted me to see what it was like for him to have to condemn sinners to hell. He made me see it through his eyes and see how very sad he was that he had to condemn these people, because he had created them and knew them all personally. He wanted nothing but the best for them but they chose a life of sin. They were given chance and chance again to turn their lives around but they chose not to. Free will is real.

It really hurt him to see them go to a place of everlasting suffering. I felt his immense power and strength but I also felt the overwhelming sadness when one of his children was condemned. And there were many.

I awoke from the dream with a new perspective, of course. We have always heard that he knows us all individually and that he cares for us as well (see this link for Scriptural references) but I got to witness it and feel it first hand (you know how real dreams can feel).

Are these dreams from God? I believe so. The Scriptures tell us that dreams are one of the most common ways he speaks (Numbers 12:6) and that they are made accessible to us through the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:16-17).

I always feel blessed when I have dreams that involve the Lord or Jesus. I often will pray at bedtime that he reveal something to me as I sleep.

 

~ Brad

Why Have Jewish People Not Accepted Christ as Their Saviour?

I was laying in bed last night and this question occurred to me, as it has many times before. As a Christian I have always respected Jews as “The Chosen People” and have respect for their culture. I am not angry at them for “killing Jesus”, like some people are, because that was the prophecy. That was what was supposed to happen according to the good book. Just like Israel falling, being scattered and then reforming, it has all come true.

I ended up Googling my query and came upon some forums where people discussed the topic. I then ended up with two videos. The first is a Jewish man explaining why Christ is not accepted as the Messiah.

His reasoning seems pretty flawed to me and subject to argument. I searched further and found a different video that shows why they are having a hard time connecting Jesus with their Bible. It’s because Isiah 53 is a chapter that has purposely been withheld from them. The video below is made by a Jewish fella and really does a fantastic job of walking a handful of people through this fact. It’s a powerful video that I highly suggest watching.

As you can see for yourself at the end of the video, 500,000 Jews have formally adopted Christ as their savior so it can happen and is happening.

More Life After Death Stuff

One of the tenets of most religions is that there is an existence after this one. Christianity is no different. Although there may be specific verses in the Old Testament which may suggest that there is no life after death, Christianity & The New Testament (some jokingly refer to as Judaism 2.0) certainly make it clear that there is:

Matthew 25:46 ESV
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

John 3:16 ESV 
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Matthew 10:28 ESV 
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Hebrews 9:27 ESV
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Luke 23:43 ESV
And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

There are many more.

Anyhoo, there is some great evidence to reinforce our beliefs for life after death from the scientific secular world (not that we need it – but its a nice addition). A recent news article posted reveals some details that scientist and doctors find puzzling. Here are a few excerpts from this article in neurosciencenews.com:

“Survivors reported having unique lucid experiences, including a perception of separation from the body, observing events without pain or distress, and a meaningful evaluation of life, including of their actions, intentions and thoughts toward others. The researchers found these experiences of death to be different from hallucinations, delusions, illusions, dreams or CPR-induced consciousness.”

“Our results offer evidence that while on the brink of death and in a coma, people undergo a unique inner conscious experience, including awareness without distress.”

“These lucid experiences cannot be considered a trick of a disordered or dying brain, but rather a unique human experience that emerges on the brink death,” says Sam Parnia, MD, PhD, the lead study investigator and an intensive care physician.

 

 

The Meaning of Life

When I was a kid and we would be watching a movie where the main character was able to ask God one question and they asked “what is the meaning of life?” I was always perplexed. I didn’t understand this question. As I got older I started understanding it a little more because I realized there are many people living rudderless and meaningless lives. That is not a dig at them. Many of them would probably admit as much.

In my mid-forties I still think the question is a little silly. The meaning of life is to find meaning in your life. Pretty simple right? But on a deeper and more spiritual level, it really means to worship God and put him before everything. It also means to follow his commandments. These commandments have true meaning and are a blueprint on how to live life.

One excerpt from scripture I found today which kind of sums this up is

Ecclesiastes 12:13

“Fear God and keep his commandments: For this is the whole duty of a man”.

There it is. That is your entire duty and purpose here.

 

 

Former Mobster Who is Now a Soldier for Christ

The mafia is known in the United States as “organized crime” which specializes in making money from illicit activities. These activities include extortion, theft, racketeering, gambling, prostitution, drugs (sometimes) and violence.

Its safe to say that anyone who partook in the “mob life” for any length of time has participated in at least some (and sometimes all) of these activities. It takes a hard heart to rob, beat and even murder people.

One of these mobster’s name is Michael Franzese. He is now very famous after he has written books about his life and has appeared on many show. He is a reformed mobster. One thing which makes him different from some other reformed mobsters is his love of and belief in Christ. You can tell by the way he speaks about Christ, by looking into his eyes, that he is all-in.

Recently, I saw an interview he did where he spoke of his days as a mobster. It should be noted that he never brags or boasts. He always admits that it was wrong and that he has many regrets.

When listening to him speak of Christianity you can tell he has a full grasp on it. I have included in this post the video I was speaking about above. I have bookmarked it to the part that I found most inspiring. Feel free to watch the interview in its entirety. I just think the most important part is him discussing his faith.

 

What Do We See When We Die?

I know all of us have heard the stories of NDS’s (near death experiences) where people see a light. Sometimes they recall seeing a dark tunnel with light at the end. Other times people will recount how they actually visited heaven or even hell in some cases.

Scientists have explained these end-of-life experiences as natural phenomenon associated with shock. Or they explain it as the brain hallucinating as it is being deprived of oxygen. Well, people pass out all the time for lack of oxygen or blood to the brain and they do not wake back up with tales of seeing deceased relatives or tours of Heaven. But I digress.

Recently, I was made aware of a website which uses a Google invented AI engine to create an image based on whatever you type in. The site is called craiyon.com. Naturally, my mind went to fullest and farthest edges of what this AI might be capable and I typed in the very question which is the title of this blog. I wanted to share the images which came back. I found them very interesting. Continue reading What Do We See When We Die?

A Thought Occurred Me Today – What Earth Actually Is

seraphim

I was laying in bed this morning and thanking God for another day on his beautiful planet, something I try to do every morning, and this morning I felt the power of Lord moreso than most mornings.

As I lay there I could feel the warmth wash over me and I was unable to continue with my morning prayer. The power of the Holy Spirit made clear formulation of words hard to accomplish. That got me thinking about the seraphim (illustrated above) which constantly fly around the Lord in heaven. They are only able to repeat “Holy, Holy, Holy” over and over again. Perhaps they are so overwhelmed by the power of the Lord this is the only thought that gushes from them. I found myself only able to repeat those same words when the power of the Lord washed over me this morning as well.

This also got me thinking about life on Earth. Maybe it is a gift to be in a sort of outpost from heaven. This space allows us to have free will and to choose our path. If we were simply born into existence near the Lord our God we would be heavily influenced by his sheer power.  Here, you are in as neutral an environment as you can get. You can choose good or bad. You can prove to the Lord that you want to be with him.

‘Earth is a middle-ground’ or  ‘a testing-ground’ is a concept most all Christians are familiar with. The cynical may try to look at God through human eyes and assigning him human thoughts, so they think there is some self-entertainment motive there. To look at the God, who is almighty and all good, in that sort of way is blasphemous. We will never be able to understand the mind of the almighty. The best we can do is worship him and pray.

 

Near Death Experiences from Very Credible Scientific People

Some of the better near death experiences (NDE’s) or after-life experiences you will ever hear are from people who were either skeptics or are trained and practicing scientists. They have solid reputations and there is no angle to be had by confabulating a story.

Today, I want to share two of those stories here on this blog. Both are profound. Both occurred to Doctors. One Doctor was a witness and the other experienced it first hand.

It can be said that since these guys went on to write about their experience and sold books and that this was their angle the entire time. But I assure you that that they were making great money already and did not want to invite the inevitable ridicule from their colleagues.

 

Hippie Girl Finds Jesus in Most Unconventional Way

One of the Youtube channels to which I am subscribed belongs to a documentary filmmaker who was very active from the 1960’s until the 2000’s. He often posts interviews he conducted of people who were young adults in the tumultuous 1960’s.

Recently, he created a mashup of people giving their interviews and released it on Youtube. One woman in particular really stuck out to people, so much so that they contacted the filmmaker and asked him to post her entire interview. He obliged.

From the moment you hear and see this person speak you will be able to tell how intelligent, bright and well-spoken she is. Her path to finding the Lord Jesus Christ is so very interesting. She basically had to take the long way around but she had one experience that is truly fascinating and was powerful enough to make her a follower of Jesus for the rest of this life. Please enjoy.

 

Listening to the Word on Your Mobile Device

One Place really Does Live Up to Its Name – This is not a paid endorsement

Two of my preset stations in my automobile are set for local Christian stations. They rotate modern Christian music in with sermons from nationally renown (and sometimes local) preachers.

As far as streaming to your mobile device goes, there is one app that really does a fantastic job. Its called OnePlace. They also have their website OnePlace.com from which you can stream. Its totally free and you can play in the background while your screen is off. I usually do exactly this when I am walking in the trails to get my daily physical exercise.

Two preachers in particular that I love listening to are Adrian Rogers and Dr. Charles Stanley. What I love about these two gentlemen’s message is that it is not sugarcoated. They specifically rail against softening the message in order to attract as many followers – like other famed personalities do. Mr. Rogers specifically will get very excited at times and his voice will become powerful and really drive home the point he is making.

I hop this information helps you find the message you are looking for and helps you deepen your devotion to Christ.