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DAILY DEVOTIONAL FRIDAY APRIL 25, 2003

(Psalms 51:10, John 3:16)



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***THIS IS A VERY SPECIAL DEVOTIONAL THAT YOU NEED TO

GET INTO THE HANDS OF EVERYONE YOU KNOW. EMAIL IT TO

EVERYONE IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK, PRINT IT OUT AND MAIL

IT TO PEOPLE YOU KNOW, POST IT AT YOUR SCHOOLS, WORKPLACE,

AND CHURCHES. THIS IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO

SHARE WITH THOSE YOU KNOW WHO ARE NOT SAVED. THE WORDS

GOD SPEAKS IN THIS DEVOTIONAL CAN CHANGE LIVES FOR ETERNITY!!!!!



THE answer to the shootings at our schools. Over the last 5 years, there

has been an epidemic of shooting in our nations schools. Sadly, there was

another one in Pennsylvania yesterday. They have taken place in elementary,

junior high, and high schools. These schools have been located in rural

areas as well as the suburbs. Those who have committed these senseless acts

of

violence have been boys and girls, though mostly boys. After each one of

these

incidents, the un-answered question remains, why?



In attempting to answer that question, we get an endless parade of pundits,

psychologists, and politicians. At the top of the debate is our nations gun

laws. Now I am all for any laws that can help make guns in our society

safer without impeding on our Constitutional rights. The fact is, we have

law books full of gun laws, many of which are not being properly enforced.

Also visible in this ongoing debate is societies role in the lives of those

who commit these acts of violence. The role of parents and the school in

these incidents is also hotly debated. While all of these factors are part

of the overall picture, they are not the real answer.



You see, we are all born into sin, with a heart that is prone to sin.

Society has put some limits on what is acceptable behavior, but the fact is

when a person chooses to ignore those limits, he or she is capable of the

most heinous kind of actions imaginable. So many kids grow up today

without a moral foundation, without any absolute truth in their lives,

without an understanding that there are very real consequences for their

actions.

It is the job of the Christian community to show people a moral base from

which

we must live our lives, that there is absolute truth, right and wrong, and

that sin carries consequences.



The real answer to this problem lies within the church, the Christian

community, those of us who acknowledge Jesus Christ as our Lord and

Savior. You see my friend, too many of us have decided to sit on our hands,

remain silent in our daily lives. When you accept Christ into your life,

you become an ambassador of the Lord. You no longer have the luxury of not

being involved. It is no accident those people God has placed in our lives.

It is no accident we go to school where we do, work where we do, live where

we do.



However, rather than letting our lights shine, far too many of God's

children hide their lights under a bushel. We tend to only associate with

other

Christians and are very bad at reaching out to others. The example Christ

gave us in

His earthly ministry was to reach out to the hurting, the broken, the

downtrodden. Yet we see these people in our lives each and every day and

pass them by,

just like the Priests passed by the wounded traveler on the road to Jericho

in

the story of the Good Samaritan. WE CAN NOT IGNORE THOSE WHO ARE HURTING,

SINCE WE HAVE THE ANSWER TO THEIR HURTS AND PAINS!!!!!!



Unfortunately, so many children grow up now in homes where their parents

are not Christians, thus the parents are also lacking a Christian foundation

in their life. Just as bad is the fact so many kids grow up in one-parent

homes. ***Let me just say this to you parents. You took the vows and

responsibility to get married. You took the responsibility to have

children. I am acutely

aware of the circumstances that cause marriages to break up, but let me

challenge

you. Before you end your marriage, before you act in what is often just a

selfish

manner, know what the consequences of your actions will be in the lives of

your

children.



I pray that this is a lesson to you young adults to really think first

before getting married. Don't be unequally yoked. Have a firm spiritual

base to your

relationship. In most cases, children will one day be involved in your life,

and your

actions will have a profound impact on their lives. Marriage is not

something to enter

into lightly. Having children is the biggest responsibility you will have in

this life, so

think about that when you are tempted to have sex without being married.



I love you and care about you so much. If you are reading this and have

never committed your life to Christ, let me assure you that He has a love

for you,

that you have never experienced before. Life does not have to be so

confusing.

There are answers to those problems you have that seem insurmountable. God

can

give you options you never even thought of. Most of all though, He has a

perfect

plan and purpose for your life, if you will just surrender yourself to Him.



Go to my website, www.liveprayer.com . On the left menu bar is: "Plan of

Salvation". Before you read it, just pray, "God, open my heart to theses

words you have for me". Read the words, and make the most important choice

you

will make in this life, to accept Jesus Christ into your heart. It won't

make all your problems go away over night. But you will have a new

strength, and new

power within you that will literally change your life.



I pray that these words today will encourage you and challenge your life.

Am I saying Christians are responsible for these school shootings? Of

course not. But we do have a responsibility to share the love and hope we

have in Christ with those who God brings into our life. It is not an

option. He did not give us the words of life, He did not give us His love so

that we

can simply hold onto it for ourselves. He gave it to us freely, so we can

give it to others freely. Will people reject your attempts? Yes. Will

people still do evil things like randomly shoot classmates and teachers?

Yes. We can not eliminate sin from the world in which we live in, but we can

do

our part to share the love and hope of Christ with others each day. God

never asked us to do it all, just our part.



***The truth is, this is a society where sin runs freely throughout, it is

ONLY the people of God that keeps it from being total chaos!!! Those who do

share their faith, reach out to others, take a bold stand for Christ are the

ONLY

reason we don't have more of these types of incidents. We have THE ANSWER

in

Christ, so let's be encouraged and get serious about sharing that answer

with

everyone that we meet!





In His love and service,

Your friend and brother in Christ,

Bill Keller







If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email

at bkeller@liveprayer.com





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copyright 2003 Bill Keller Ministries. All rights reserved.







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