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October's featured article

Halloween

What It Is From A Christian Perspective

Many Christians will allow and even encourage their children to pay respect to the devil on October 31 without knowing they do so. Churches will fully sanction the event with parties that will be decorated with witches, cats, brooms, jack-o-lanterns and bobbing apples. What is the harm? How did this originate?

The custom of Halloween is traced to the Druid festival of the dead. At that time the Roman Pantheon was built by Emperor Hadrian in 100 A.D. as a temple to the goddess Cybele and other Roman deities. It became the principle place of worship. Roman pagans prayed for the dead. Rome was captured and the Pantheon fell into disrepair. Emperor Phocas captured Rome and gave the Pantheon to Pope Boniface IV in 609. He reconsecrated it to the Virgin Mary and resumed using the temple to pray for the dead, only now it was "Christianised", as men added the unscriptural teaching of purgatory.

In 834 A.D. Gregory IV extended the feast for all the church and it became known as All Saint's Day, still remembering the dead. Samhain, a Druid god of the dead was honoured at Halloween in Britain, France, Germany and the Celtic countries. Samhain called together all wicked souls who died within the past year and that were destined to inhabit animals.

This celebration of the dead honoured the god of the dead on this particular night. Druids believed that souls of the dead returned to their former homes to be entertained by the living. Bonfires were built atop hills so they might find their way. Suitable food and shelter was provided for these spirits or else they would cast spells, cause havoc, steal infants, destroy crops, kill farm animals and create terror as they haunted the living. The spirits demanded placating by giving them a type of worship and offering. This is the action that "Trick-or-Treat" emulates today.

The Samhain celebration used nuts, apples, skeletons, witches and black cats. Divination and auguries were practised as well as magic to seek answers for the future. Black cats were considered to be reincarnated beings with the ability to divine the future. During this festival supernatural beings terrified the populace. Even today witchcraft practitioners declare October 31st as the most conducive time to practice their arts.

The Christian church tried to eliminate the Druid celebration by offering All Saint's Day as a substitute. As Christianity spread over Europe and the British Isles, it attempted to replace the pre-existing pagan cult worship of Apollo, Diana or Ymir, but to no avail.

Although the outward forms of such worship disappeared, the belief in these deities did not. They found an outlet during the Middle Ages in the open practice of witchcraft which is presently enjoying a revival in many countries, including the U.S. In Germany the occult is considered more prevalent than in the Middle Ages. The deistic cults held periodic meetings known as witches Sabbath's, and it is the same today with October 31st being of more importance.

Read Full Article Halloween

Walid Shoebat - END TIMES ALERT! - (Full Version)

Walid Shoebat on The End Times ALERT! Eschatology: Holy Bible Prophecies!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=rYv3L5UX7l0

Book 1 of Musings A Few Small Fish

Accept the large with grace, but always be thankful for the small blessings of God.

What started me on this topic was a clause I noticed during my devotional reading. It is found in the Gospel of Mark, where the Lord Jesus was feeding the crowd by a miracle.

The words I noticed are as follow: "They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also." Now the Lord already had taken the seven loaves of bread and given thanks.

You would think the Lord would have thanked God for the bread and the fish, and then distributed them.

No, He gave thanks for the seven loaves and gave them to His disciples to set before the people.

Then the Lord took a few small fish and gave thanks for them also.

That was what struck me, "He gave thanks for them also."

I commented to Audrey at the time, because it seemed so unusual.

But isn't it the truth?

We are likely to give thanks for some great blessing in our life (sometimes we don't even do that).

But how about the few small fish, the daily blessings and answers to prayer.

Do we take them for granted?

We don't get much rain here in Southern California. So when it does rain, I thank the Lord for every drop, thinking what it means to us and to the little wild animals that trust God for their survival.

We have been short of annual rainfall for a couple of years now. This morning it spattered a few drops and then quit. I am praising God for those few drops.

Every Sunday morning Audrey and I praise God for the strength (we are in our seventies) and opportunity to serve God on one more day. I think there are many people in the spirit realm who would give anything to be able to serve God one more day on the earth.

I thank God when the weather is warm, for I was born in Maine and raised in Connecticut. I praise God when the weather is cold, because it rejuvenates me and I feel like a horse on a windy day.

I can still play the piano - something to be thankful for.

Many of my aches and pains have been worked out as I have insisted on keeping going. Something to be thankful for.

The dog is healthy. Something to be thankful for. There is enough food in the house. Something to be thankful for. I am confident concerning the future even if war does come; because I know the Lord will provide for me and my loved ones. I look forward to death like I used to think of Christmas when I was a boy.

Such peace of mind is something to be thankful for.

I got up this morning warm, healthy, clothed, fed, and ready to serve God.

Thank you Lord!

What about you?

What "few small fish" do you have that you can be thankful for today?

He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. (Mark 8:6-7)

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Do you have a ministry or a business

Do you have a called of God ministry where your whole purpose is to "feed the sheep", and God supplies your needs, or do you have books, tapes, videos, etc. that you SELL for a "donation", or just outright SELL, and your buyers supply your needs?

There is nothing wrong with being in business and selling things. However, if you are a church or any kind of "ministry", you may want to check your motive for how you are conducting the work of the Lord.

Remember the money changers in the temple where JESUS turned over the tables and threw them out. They were selling things in the "CHURCH". (God made it quite clear to us that we were not to charge for anything, that HE was our source.)

We feature articles by Words of Righteousness, check out the below to find out more.

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Articles of Trumpet Ministries WOR

Sermons on the Paster's page www.wor.org

We also feature articles By David C. Pack see below to find out more.

By David C. Pack

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"As Pastor General of The Restored Church of God, David C. Pack oversees the world’s most extensive biblically based websites. He has established over 50 congregations, authored more than 20 books, and has written hundreds of booklets and articles. As Editor-in-Chief of The Real Truth magazine and voice of The World to Come program, he has reached millions around the globe with the most powerful truths of the Bible, unknown to almost all".

WHY Coming World Punishment! (Part 1)

http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=560338

20 Verses Christianity Ignores! (Part 1)

[http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=560674

http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=560674]

The Trinity—Does the Bible Teach It? Does the Bible teach that God is a “Trinity”—three persons in one being? Most professing Christians answer “yes.” Although long the litmus test of traditional

[http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=561007,1

http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=561008,1]

presented by David C. Pack

You Can Prove the Bible’s Authority

http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=560678

Many accept the Bible’s divine authority on faith, thinking it cannot be proven. Is what is often called the Book of books the Word of God? Or is it mere superstition—an uninspired work of men?

What Is Human Nature?

The human mind has brought awesome advancements in science, technology and exploration. But it also yields vanity, greed, lust, deceit—and appalling evil. Why this paradox? You can understand! presented by David C. Pack

[http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=558753,1

'Childrearing – God’s Way'

The family unit is under assault as never before. But parents can rear balanced, moral children in a degenerate, immoral society! God’s Word reveals much about proper childrearing. Here are life-changing biblical teachings! presented by David C. Pack

[http://www.worldtocome.org/player.html#!Item=558782,1

Christians are left with real questions in reference to Islam:

What role if any did the teachings of the Qur'an play in the 9/11 attacks? What does Islam really teach? What about Jihad? Should Christians try to befriend our Muslim neighbors and share the gospel? If so, how? The title is Understanding Islam: A Christian Perspective. I would like you to watch it for free. Please forward this to all your friends!

Your free video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5fzeexxJno

Guest speaker James Walker of the Watchmen Fellowship

Free Video & Profile: Only six shopping days till Armageddon? The Mayan Calendar ends next Friday and the media is giving major coverage to a growing number of "doomsday preppers" getting ready for what they fear may be the "end of the world as we know it" next week on December 21, 2012.

I think they need to be getting ready for another end-times "false alarm." Apparently, the Mayan couldn't even predict the demise of their own civilization -- much less ours. Nevertheless, thousands around the world are holding their breath, waiting for next Friday. Even some on Christian Television, such as Jack Van Impe, cannot resist the temptation of date-setting. So what is a proper Christian approach to true Bible prophecies and end-times teachings in light of all the false prophets today?

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=JxIbd&m=JHqs9G7j_w_D6D&b=FeI041clTWvMlX662GftBw

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-== Book 1 of Musings Amateur Christians==
+== Book 1 of Musings A Few Small Fish==
 ===Accept the large with grace, but always be thankful for the small blessings of God.===