OUT OF THE BOX

People who are into porn and public nudity often proclaim that the human body is good and we should not be ashamed to show it. They also charge that Christians, because they believe in modesty, think the sexual aspect of the human body is evil. But to the contrary, Christians frown on public nudity and pornography because sex is sacred, not evil. After all, God created male and female, and said “it is good.” There are two things the scripture forbids us to flaunt in public—that which is evil and that which is sacred. The evil is forbidden because it is evil. The sacred is to be treasured. It is not for the public eye because it is precious and not to be treated as common. Sex should be reserved for the intimacy of a man and woman in marriage, and not displayed as a public spectacle. God is not an old fogy who sees sex as evil. A reading of Song of Solomon will show that the sexual aspect of marriage is God’s gift to mankind. Man did not create sex when God was not looking and then surp

"Mercy and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed." Psalm 85:10 We all want mercy. But we must remember that mercy loves and accompanies truth. It is the honest heart that experiences the fullness of God's mercy. Mercy also loves mercy, meaning we must show mercy if we expect to receive mercy. We all want peace. But we must remember that peace loves and accompanies righteousness. There is no peace to the wicked. His mercies are new every morning and His peace passes all understanding. These are the blessings He gives to those who love and follow Jesus Christ.                                               ---Billy Long

If I made a list of the miracles I have witnessed and the ones I have been a part of, you would be pressed to believe in God and His desire to work intimately in the lives of people. But then if I were to make a list of my failures and struggles, you might say, “Where is your God?” I could write a book listing miraculous provision and answers to prayer in which the reality of the Lord’s presence was palpable. But then I could write another book telling of the times I was in “the deep” about to be swallowed up and close to losing everything. I could tell you of friends being healed through prayer and also of others dying in spite of it. I have friends who have experienced miraculous healings and friends who have been raised from the dead. Some have received an immediate response to prayer, and others have suffered what seems an interminable wait as they call on the Lord daily for healing, help, or an “open door.” I have experienced the people of God, their love for one another, and th