Finally! The Long Awaited "Conversation with Joseph" Audio is Ready

Sound the trumpets!
Set off the fireworks!
Queue the resounding applause!

Yes, the loooong awaited, much anticipated "Conversation with Joseph" audio is up on Internet Archive and ready for your listening ears. Just go back to the article - about 4 or 5 articles back from this one - by that same title, and click on the link as directed (it's near the bottom half of the text...you can't miss it).

Whew. Glad that's done. Now Frank can finish the "cliffhanger." Hope you enjoy it. Remember this audio is taken out in the street, not in a studio: the distracting hustle, bustle, and noise reflects the way it is when you are sharing out in public. You have to listen carefully to catch everything Joseph is saying.

Share your thoughts via comments, if you wish. As always, we'd love to hear your feedback.
Paul

EVG Sponsor Offer: Join Us In Fulfilling The Great Commission

We are making an offer to anyone who would like to join us in fulfilling the Great Commision (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8). Living Waters has released the DVD, "Evolution vs. God" (EVG), and we see this as another avenue with which we can reach the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ. If you would like to get in on this, but lack opportunity, here is our offer:

You may SPONSOR a give-away of EVG to a designated school, event, town, area, etc., by purchasing the DVDs and having them delivered to one of us at Iowa Seed Sowers. They are available from Living Waters (www.livingwaters.com) for $2 dollars if you purchase 10 or more, and also from The Berean Call (www.thebereancall.org) for the same price. We will arrange to distribute the DVDs for you, and post the results here on the ISS website.

God instructs us to redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16; Colossians 4:5), and to be ZEALOUS of good works (Titus 2:14). Are you in? WE ARE! If you would like to join us as we labor in the harvest fileds for our Lord, email myself or Frank and make arrangements. Our email is located on the "Contact Us" tab.



Charles Spurgeon said: "If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for."

Response to EVG

Has anyone else been following the response to the DVD, "Evolution vs. God" on Facebook or other social media? Wow; you need to check it out. Go to Facebook and type "Evolution vs God" and just read the comments posted there.  Then go the the website and watch the movie. It's at www.evolutionvsgod.com

Or, send people to the Iowa Seed Sowers website and watch it below!

Want to get involved? Why not get some of the DVDs to give away to people you meet, or a business card with the website so people can watch this and be challenged in their "faith" in secular science textbooks, professors & teachers, and evolution THEORY, which is unprovable and therefore NOT science. It's a fairy tale for grownups who, though they do know the God of the Bible, will not glorify him as God, but have become vain in their imaginations, have had their foolish hearts darkened, and worship that which the Almighty has created rather than worshipping the One who created all things. See Romans 1:18-23.

Lawton Becomes "LAW town" via God's Moral Law

We're visiting Michigan for a week of vacation & our annual family get-together with Mary's kinfolk, staying at a rental home on Gravel Lake. We make daily runs into Lawton or Paw Paw for groceries and supplies, and yesterday it was Mary's & my turn to run to the grocery store in Lawton. So we got what we could find there, gave out a few tracts, and then walked across the street to the Public Library to use the rest room.

Lawton Public Library is on the left, grocery store on the right

Over the next 20 minutes or so, we crossed paths with a couple of young men, Matt and Ryan. Titanic tracts always go down well, and we used them to explain how God has provided a "life boat" in the Lord Jesus Christ, our only means to escape "going down with the ship." I went through a couple of the 10 Commandments to make it clear that all have sinned; Lawton, Michigan became LAW town, for a few minutes, and we pray the law would do its work in these men's hearts.

Matt seemed very interested & thankful for the conversation. He was wearing a large cross on a chain about his neck, and had a large cross tattoo on his right forearm, but I didn't get a sense that he is born again. We pray that he will be.

Ryan was an interesting fellow. He walked with us down the sidewalk as I explained the gospel. He's a felon, without work, and therefore is drawn to illegal methods to make money. We stopped at a street corner while Mary went into a Pharmacy, and I encouraged Ryan to flee from the wrath of a Holy God to the one and only Savior of sinners. He kept saying, " I know...I know...", but something has its hooks in him and is preventing him from running to Christ. I asked if he had a Bible at home, and he said, "Of course!" So we parted, and lifted both men up in prayer to God. Please do the same, and may we meet them again in Heaven some day.

That was yesterday. Today I made a run to Adams Hardware store with my daughter Emily and nephew Ian, for fishing licenses and some gear. Raoul helped us with the fishing lisences, and he got our thanks and an "Are You A Good Person?" tract. The lady at the checkout (I am terrible with names, and have forgotten her's) got a "CONTRADICT" tract, and listened while I explained the message on this one (how different religions have different beliefs about God, man, Heaven, Hell, etc., and that they are different one from another; they actually contradict one another, so they cannot all be true). There were no other customers in line, so we chatted about the outrageous claims made by Jesus Christ, like he being the only way to the Father (John 14:6), or that he had power on earth to forgive sin thereby proving he is God (Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:10; Luke 5:24). Like the Temple guards said so well, "Never man spake like this man." (John 7:46) I told her that Hell is a real place where real people go, and that God's will is that no one go there (2 Peter 3:9). I had just paid my bill, so I shared with her how that Jesus has done all the work necessary to purchase our pardon, and said his last words were, "It is finished" or in the Greek, "Tetelestai" meaning "Paid In Full." So because of this fact, we must repent/beleive on Jsus and be born-again and receive the gift of eternal life.

We stopped at Country Lakes General Store for some bait, and Emily got ice cream. While waiting, I got a chance to speak with Amber, the young lady serving ice cream. This is her last day working there, as she is off to college at Ferris State University. Funny how things work out. I happen in on our once-a-year trip to Michigan to this store in the middle of nowhere, and our paths cross. Next day she's outta there. So she took the "Good Person?" tract I offered her, but we had to wait a bit longer for something Ian was getting, so I went out to the car and grabbed a "COEXIST" tract and an "Evolution vs. God" DVD for her, and handed it to her through the walk-up window. She listened as I explained the DVD, and seemed sincerely interested;I hope she really looks into these things and considers her eternal soul.

So join us in prayer for these ones mentioned here, and take advantage of the privilege we have here in the USA to share our faith and reach out to the precious souls around us with the only gospel there is or that saves: the gospel of Christ (Romans 1:16). It's a heckuva way to enjoy your vacation, I'm telling you!

We love you in Jesus Christ.
Paul

4,000

Got out to the M'town Thursday Farmers Market this afternoon. Had a good conversation with Juliet, a woman from the Philippines now living in Marshalltown. She has a ministry to orphans and the poor back in the Philippines. We met several months ago when I was out with a cross in front of Wal-Mart. She told me she was an ordained minister, so we had a lot of discussion on the prohibition in the scriptures about a woman elder, pastor or bishop (1 Tim 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Timothy 2: 9-15; Romans 16:1-5; etc).

My understanding is that; outside of the gathering together of the church, women should witness, even preach the gospel, and minister in word & deed the gospel, the love & mercy of the Lord Jesus. But when the church gathers, a woman must not preach or teach, or be in authority over the church. I am constrained by the clear revelation of the scriptures, and this is very clear. Sure, many churches in the USA ignore this teaching, but I love the Lord and his word, and I will not violate it or encourage others to do so. Juliet is Pentecostal, and I expressed my concern for her sake because of the excess of focus on "spiritual gifts", things attributed to the Holy Spirit that range from questionable to outright profane and bizarre! Well, we had a good Bible discussion: I listened to her, and she listened to me, all respectfully snd with Christian charity, and I am glad she stopped by.

So, whats this got to do with "4,000"?
Nothing.
It's just that some time earlier today, we passed the 4,000 visitor mark on this website. Maybe that's not a lot of traffic on a regular website, but we don't exist to sell stuff or elevate ourselves; we exist only to glorify God, and to edify the body of Christ. We (apparently) are getting visitors from China, France, Australia, Russia, Germany, The Netherlands, Canada, Serbia, Switzerland, Ukraine, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Denmark, Belgium, Italy, and the UK. Wow - that's cool! Are these real people, or just software program "robots" surfing internet sites looking to place advertising? Well, if YOU visit us, I hope we can encourage, bless, challenge, and exhort you to really KNOW the Lord - to be born again into the family of God; or for our brethren in Christ, to enjoy his fellowship and to reach out to the lost with the hope of the gospel.

Do us a favor, and leave a comment if you can. Got a question? Let's hear it. Got a testimony to share? Lets hear that, too.
We love you in Jesus Christ.
Paul

Conversation with Joseph

I made it down to the Farmers Market this morning. Beautiful sunny day. I set up the box on the northeast corner of Court Ave and 4th. While I was speaking, a man came up and listened intently. After some time, he cane up to ask a question.

His name was Joseph, a Jewish man from St. Louis,  Missouri. He said, "I'm Jewish."
What followed was a really neat experience for me.

FINALLY!!! Click HERE for the link to that discussion with Joseph. Go to the upper right side of the screen and hit the PLAY arrow to start it. I was going through some of the tracts we hand out, and was finishing up with the Titanic collectible postcard tract. Joseph shows up at the 7:29 mark on the audio.

The photo below is a 360-degree panoramic view from the top of my soapbox. (Click on the photo and you can view it bigger.) The crowd is thinning out because the Market was just about to close (closes at 12 Noon). It was packed at 10 AM when I got there, and that was a pleasant surprise...this day was also the first weekend of the Iowa State Fair, and I expected attendance at the FM to be down. If you ever take a panoramic photo, turn the camera in the opposite direction of the traffic. I did not, and that is why you see some odd things in this shot. (Example: the lady in the bright blue shirt appears once on the far left, and three times toward the right side.  Also, see anything strange about the couple walking away from the camera in the middle of the photo? Whoa!)

A Poem on Reading the Bible

Here's a poem that Dave Hunt often quoted

(taken from the Berean Call Facebook page):

Dave Hunt
1926 - 2013

 Yes, I thought I knew my Bible,
Reading piecemeal hit or miss.
Now a bit of Psalms and Proverbs,
... Now a verse in Genesis.
Certain chapters of Isaiah,
Certain Psalms, the twenty-third,
Twelfth of Romans, first of Proverbs,
Yes, I thought I knew the Word.

But I found that thorough reading
Was a different thing to do
And the way was unfamiliar
When I read my Bible through.

You who like to “play” at Bible,
Dip and dabble here and there,
Just before you kneel a-weary
And yawn through a hurried prayer.
You who treat the crown of writings
Like you treat no other book,
Just a paragraph disjointed,
Just a crude impatient look.
Try a worthier procedure,
Try a broad and steady view.

You will bow in very wonder
When you read the Bible through.
And through and through…

(Author unknown)

 

Evolution vs. God Released on YouTube

Living Waters has released "Evolution vs. God" on YouTube this morning. Check it out. I ordered 50 copies of the DVD (from The Berean Call - $2.00 each if you order 10 or more)., and look forward to giving these out to believers, atheists, and agnostics. Will you help get this important message out?

2013 TBC Conference - Live Streaming Info

Hey, our brothers over at The Berean Call are hosting their annual conference out in Bend, Oregon this August 23-24. It's free, but you do need to register. Better yet, for those of us who can't make it, they are going to streaming the conference live! I'm planning on logging in. Here's a promo video, and I've copied the link for the live streaming information below the video.
Paul

 

http://www.thebereancall.org/content/streaming-2013-conference

Manti, Utah Mormon Outreach

For the past few years I have been asked to take part in the Utah Outreach to Mormons in Manti, Utah during the Manti Mormon Miracle Pageant.  Finally through God’s will and answered prayer  I along with a team of 51 people from 7 different fellowships, First Family Church of Ankeny, IA being the majority,  was able to go between June 17 -24.  I was so blessed to be a part of this endeavor and would gladly go again…even possibly for both weeks.  

There was so much packed into the week that I spent that it seemed like I was gone for a month.  The travel was just as long as going back home to visit my parents in NJ.  Thankfully we had power outlets on the bus so we can charge cell phones, laptops and other things to help pass the time.

We continuously had training in addition to the 8 weeks we had previous to the trip.  From the moment we got on the bus we watched training videos and documentaries on Mormonism on the big screens, and listening to audio on our cell phones.  Each day we also had training at Ephraim Church of the Bible in Ephraim, UT which was 6 miles from Manti Temple.   HERE is one such lesson.  There we were able to buy tracts, DVD’s, and Mormon material to share Christ and hopefully open the eyes of the blind of the Mormon indigenous.  It was awesome how much training and materials the church provided.  And I cannot forget the great worship and prayer we had while we were there.  You can listen and watch some of it HERE. 

Many prayers were answered during the time we were there.  One of which was getting the tents set up in Christian Ghetto (our park camping spot) with good weather and quickly.  We had not a cloud in the sky and got all 11 tents up in less than an hour.  Logistics throughout the trip went very smoothly from the travel going out to the travel coming back. The only problems that we had were several people getting sick, which is a normal occurrence due to the high altitudes of Utah. 

During our trip we took a tour of Salt Lake City and traveled around a bit to see the history of Mormonism straight from the source.  It gave me a whole new outlook on Mormonism than ever before.  I thought it was deceptive before, but this trip confirmed it. 

We took a walk through the Church Museum where they showed mostly the exodus out of Missouri to Salt Lake City.  The one thing that really got me thinking was Joseph Smith’s bible and some of the original transcripts of the Book of Mormon which they called “ancient writings”.  Last time I checked, Civil War era was not considered “ancient”.  But it was interesting that his bible was all scratched out and edited to fit his doctrine.     

Next we took a walk over to Temple Square and saw a film in the Joseph Smith building called, Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration.  It was probably the most deceptive thing of the whole trip in which right in the beginning it tells you that it's all true, when it wasn't.  It depicted Joseph Smith as a God fearing, family man who loves the Lord.  This couldn’t have been further from the truth.  Joseph Smith dabbled in the occult with his peep-stones, he had 33 other wives (some of which were under aged or married, which he had the nerve to say God ordained it.  They never showed the translation process of the Book of Mormon, nor do you see the gold plates at all.  So much was left out but they managed to add that he healed the sick and raised the dead (which never happened).  We also went to the Temple Square Visitors Center which I called the “Grand Propaganda Building”. This housed TV’s so you can watch LDS commercials, and get a look at the SLC Temple dollhouse which shows what it looks like inside without being there, and equipped with missionaries to answer any questions (which I had a few myself).  We were able to witness with a few LDS missionaries practicing to go out on mission and it was interesting to see their reaction to some of our questions.  It was great practice to go on the streets of Manti. 

Witnessing on the streets of Manti was challenging, but also in a way was normal for me.  It’s always a challenge to engage someone in conversation so you have to be pretty creative when it comes to starting a conversation.  Tracts are a good way of doing that.  I can’t go into detail with every conversation, but the ones that stick out in my mind were the really good ones. 

My first encounter was in the food court with a teenage girl and her two younger brothers.  I used a display called, “Heavenly Father’s Plan of Salvation” where I got it from Deseret Books in Temple Square, SLC and gave it to them and asked them if that was truly what their church teaches.  They said it did.  But then I asked them, “What was missing”?  That’s when they really opened up and after 5 minutes and giving up, I said, “Jesus.  You belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and according to this document from your church, Jesus…is NOT a part of Heavenly Father’s plan of salvation.”  So I asked another question, “So according to this document, who saves who?” which one of the boys said it clearly, “we save ourselves.”  That’s when their phones went off the hook and their parents were calling to tell us to leave the conversation.  The devil hates it when we share our faith.  

 

It was cool to watch the eyes of the blind wake up and realize what they are doing, living, and experience is wrong.  There was one kid, Wyatt, who was really confused at what Rob Sivulka was open-air preaching.  And when confronting Wyatt in a way using the 10 Commandments to awaken his conscience, it was amazing to see how he couldn’t understand what I was talking about then in the following 15 minutes totally understanding and joyful of what I was showing him through God’s Word.  It was pretty mindblowing especially when he went away with a New Testament hopping and jumping so full of joy and turning around seeing that you had a group of Christians who witnessed the whole thing saying that a miracle just happened.  It was totally cool. 

There were a lot of “firsts times” while we were there.  It was the first time:

·         during the pageant that every Christian had at least one witnessing encounter.

·         there were not enough actors to perform just one part in the pageant and they had to double or even triple up on parts.  There has been a significant decline in members every year.  This has been because of the efforts of us Christians taking time and going to Manti to share our faith, and also the internet in which questions are being asked...and answered. 

·         the tours at Temple Square were shut down.  This was due to too many Christians taking tours and asking questions. 

In short it was an amazing trip.  If you have a heart for the Mormon people, and those trapped in Mormonism and you desire to see those saved with the true gospel, I highly recommend going to this event.

Ripped Up Tract Found

I keep gospel tracts on me when out and about, and sometimes I will place tracts in a place where others may find them. During the week, I try to get a 10-minute walk in at the 9 AM break at my factory. Its a prayer walk, in which I thank God and make request for Mary and the children. I'll give out gospel tracts when I can, or leave one along the bike path, as I did yesterday: I tucked a COEXIST tract (Gospel Tract Planet - www.tractplanetcom) on the wooden bridge railing in a conspicuous place. (FYI: this tract happens to also be the perfect size to put in the credit card reader at the gas pump - try it sometime!)

This morning, I found the tract torn-up and on the ground about 100 feet away from where I left it. I placed a good one on the left for comparison in the picture below:

I'm not unhappy about this at all, and here's why: it looks like someone grabbed the tract while walking, read it, got mad and ripped it into 3 pieces, and tossed it aside. Most likely, the Holy Spirit was bringing some conviction to bear, and thus the ripped up tract. You may judge - here's what the tract says:

"Can all world religions really coexist? Does it matter what you believe? Does your belief make it true? Imagine having to jump from an airplane that was about to crash. If you had three possible items to strap to your back, which would you choose: a tire, a briefcase full of money, or a parachute? There is only one right answer that can save your life. This is why all religions cannot coexist. They each give different ideas about God, but only one is true! Jesus said, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.' (Jn. 14:6) He made an exclusive claim. Either it is true or it is not. God the Father verified this truth by raising Christ from the dead after His crucifixion. This proves that His words are true and that He is God. Have you lied, stolen, lusted, or taken His name in vain? The Bible warns that we are sinners and deserve the wrath of God. If you will repent (turn away from sin) and trust in Christ alone for salvation, He will credit you with His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21). Give your life and allegiance to Christ alone. Please visit: www.YouGotOurTract.com"

So the tract got read, and while the person who read it was able to rip it up and throw it down, I pray they will not be able to rip it out of their memory. May these words appear on the ceiling when they lie down to sleep at night. Who knows? Perhaps it is the first step on their way to salvation? May it be so, Almighty God. Paul.