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Showing posts from October, 2022

Choose The Presence

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Choose The Presence By Tobin Crenshaw In the Old Testament we are told when Moses received the Ten Commandments there was a tremendous display of God's presence. Exodus tells us, "And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not" (Exodus 20:18-20)รข€‹. The children of Israel had seen miracles as they were delivered from Egypt, they saw the miracle of the parting of the Red Sea, but when it came to the presence of God they asked Moses to intercede for them. Ronald Crandall well states, "We need to qualify what church we want to be a part of... The church of the wilderness experience or the church of t

From Slave To Alcohol To Child Of The King

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From Slave To Alcohol To Child Of The King By Tobin Crenshaw In the late 1800's Mel Trotter was a slave to alcohol. It consumed his every whim, and his every dollar. Married, he had a young child that was suffering malnutrition due to Mel spending all the family's money on liquor. As the child became more ill, Mel became more lost and distant. One day he returned home to find his child had died at only four years old. Mel knew it was his fault. Weeping he told his wife, "I'm a murderer. I'm anything but a man. I can't stand it, and I won't stand it! I'll end my life." He did not follow through with ending his life. Instead within two hours of the funeral he was drunk again. What happens when a person is so consumed with themselves they can't even see the needs of those they are created to protect and provide for? What does one do with a man or woman who is so selfish they would reach such a low place in their life that it would seem all h

A Former Missionary Finds God

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A Former Missionary Finds God By Tobin Crenshaw David Flood and Aggie Hurst's story of redemption is a picture of unending grace that has captured hearts for decades. In the early 1900's David and Svea Flood entered the mission field in Africa. Another missionary couple joined them. After little success at reaching the people around them, the other missionary couple gave up and returned home. The only contact the Flood's had was with a little boy who sold fruit. Svea Flood gave birth on the mission field to a daughter, but died from malaria shortly thereafter. It was then that David gave up as well, gave up the mission field, gave up his faith, and gave up his newborn daughter. Feeling abandoned by God, he left the baby at the mission station and returned to his home, broken hearted. The people that adopted her named her Aggie. For as long as Aggie Hurst had been alive, her father David Flood had remained on the other side of the ocean, ignoring her attempts at reconc

The Words Of Jesus Not In Red

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The Words Of Jesus Not In Red By Tobin Crenshaw Many New Testament translations have the words of Jesus appear in red to make them easier to locate in the Bible. However, there are less familiar words of Christ found in the Old Testament that are just as powerful and inspired, but for some reason editors have not placed these words in red which is why so many people miss them. Scripture paints life as a courtroom scene. The devil is called the "accuser", taking on the role of prosecutor, pointing out people's faults and sin. The Father is seen as the righteous Judge, and Jesus is called the "advocate", similar to the role of a defense attorney. While the devil calls out "guilty" all day long, it is Christ who simply responds, "Not guilty." The reason is that by his death he took our guilt and "nailed it to a tree." The Bible says that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil who had kept men in fear of death and judgment.

Darkest Before The Dawn

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Darkest Before The Dawn By Tobin Crenshaw Theodore Roosevelt's wife and mother both died on the same night. This excruciating experience helped shape the man he would become as he went into solitude for many months to heal and recover. The scars he bore from this tragedy gave him a strength and a resolve that would carry him into the presidency. Steve Jobs, who famously founded Apple, was just as famously fired from this same company. Years later he was brought back into the company because they needed his genius to turn things around. His creativity and innovation and ability to see things as they could be took Apple from a $5 billion dollar company into a $170 billion dollar company in ten years. What did Jobs do to accomplish this? He turned boring computers into colorful, hip and fun additions to the home and office. He created computers that were red, green, blue and yellow and the world ate it up. He charted the course where none had seen the potential, using his pain t