THE POWER OF USING POWERPOINT

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powerpoint

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Ken Blue

 All appears quite on the home front. The brethren who were vehemently against PowerPoint have evidently seen the light, or retreated into a cave. There is no need for fear. There never was, but anything new terrifies the brethren, until they can convince others they came up with the idea. So, do thy self no harm.

 If your church is small, and you seldom have visitors, PowerPoint will be of little value to you. Most churches of a hundred or less operate as a family atmosphere. All the members know each other by name, they are one happy family, and many hope it stays that way. Everyone has access to the pastor, and he loves it. In addition, all the members bring their Bibles, and can find the books with ease. If you don’t have visitors, and your church is not growing, you may not need Power Point.

 On other hand, if you have visitors each Sunday, PowerPoint can be a great advantage, and should be used. Keep in mind that most visitors are self-conscious, and your church is a strange environment for them. They do not want to be pointed out, nor embarrassed as they fumble through the Bible in an attempt to keep up with the pastor. So, if you want your church to grow new converts, make it easy for visitors and new members to follow you. You want your visitors to return next Sunday. Give them a reason to return.

Wisdom will dictate that you put your sermon outline, sub points, and Bible verses on Power Point. The benefits of doing this far exceed your fears. It is better to make is easy for people to trust Christ than it is to try to teach them to find verses in the Bible before they are saved. Win them first, and then teach them. Preaching and teaching is an educational process. You should use every tool available to reinforce your teaching. Power Point, and handouts will do that.

Now, for those who fear that people will not learn how to find the books in the Bible, and that is the excuse many pastors use, the key is to not put the verses up on PowerPoint in the evening service. Visitors seldom attend these services.

Pastor seldom give it a thought that most believers in both Testaments did not have a Bible in their hand. The priest or the preacher read aloud, and the people listened. So, don’t get the idea that the Bible is a fetish that must be held in your hands. It is the Word of God, no matter how it is proclaimed.  

 

You should not throw the baby out with the bath water. Learn how to balance your ministry so you can best help those who attend. However, you should create handouts of your sermon, and let the people fill in the blanks. Yours is a teaching ministry. Let wisdom guide you instead of fear.

Creating an outline, and putting Bible verses for PowerPoint will require a little more effort on your part. However, the benefits far outweigh the time invested. Don’t allow PowerPoint paranoia  to paralyze you. I believe there are two reasons pastors refuse to do the above; it requires work, and they are lazy, they fear what other pastors will think and say.

 

PASTORS WHO ARE PUPPETS

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ARE YOU A PUPPET PASTOR OF A CHURCH

puppetBy Ken Blue

When I was a child, I always enjoyed the time of the Apple Blossom Festival. Not only did it bring several hundred people from other states, a carnival also came to town. There was everything you can imagine for the children, and the adults.

In addition to the hundreds of rides, games, concession stands, and clowns, there were always several puppet shows going on at the same time. As kids, we were mesmerized by the music, the characters, and the life-like stories. In fact, we would get so caught up in the story, and the action that we failed to notice that there were adults behind the curtains pulling, and manipulating the strings to create the action. The puppets had no life of their own, they were unknowingly controlled by the pull of others.

I must admit, there was a time in my early ministry when, I too, was a puppet on an invisible string.  I could not see it, but those with discernment could. The sad part was, I wasn’t sure of my own identity, or who was pulling the strings. I wasn’t sure, but I believed if I did not move according their influence, the strings would be cut.

Pastors, including myself, fall into a “herd mentality.” Little by little, we believe if we should offend or break from the herd, the wolves will devour us. The only safety, is loyalty to, and cooperation with the brethren. If you doubt this, just invite a guest speaker, or attend a conference not on their approval list. Oh, how the gossip will fly. “Blue is no longer a Bible believer. He now has PowerPoint, and I hear they serve coffee. What a shame. His church has become a theater.” Those are the more generous criticism.

I have discovered, and painfully so, that many I counted as true friends forsook me “faster than a speeding bullet” when I determined to pastor counter to their brain washed MIND SET. There are many pastors who would like to rearrange their ministries, but they fear, and they know the second they did they would indeed become “independent Baptist.” Pastors need to understand that “the brethren” do not build their church. Are you a puppet, pastor?

THAT’S HOW IT IS AT 75

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 old man 75

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Ken Blue

 

I look in the mirror, then look away.

That is not the face, I saw yesterday.

It’s full of wrinkles, with age in its eyes.

That’s how it is at 75.

 

Today’s entertainment is spawned in hell.

Performers and supporters will go there as well.

Try and find a young conscience that’s alive.

That’s how it is at 75.

 

I dig out old pictures of a young man.

I stare at them, and then recall my plans.

But now, I’ve discover, life had its surprise.

That’s how it is at 75.

 

I would kiss little babies on their head

And hug old grandmas, “you’re pretty,” I said

Grandmas’ look better now; game plans revised.

That’s how it is at 75

 

I no longer build castles in the air.

There is One who went, a place to prepare.

My greatest challenge is to stay alive.

That’s how it is at 75.

 

I know what’s coming, the Bible says so.

I made Jesus my Savior long ago.

So, in this world of madness, I’ll survive.

That’s how it is at 75. 

 

ISRAEL, THE WOMAN, AND THE MAN CHILD # 44

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REVELON BOOK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Revelation 12

The disciples, who represented the nation of Israel, and the kingdom were told by Jesus that they were the light of the world. Isaiah said concerning Israel, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.  For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.  And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isaiah 60:1-3). Thus the woman, clothed with the sun, is an intended symbol of Israel in her future power and glory.

 

The moon, under her feet, is the lesser light, and is also connected with Israel’s dominion, which she will have over the whole earth, through the “man child,” in the Millennium, and throughout eternity. The moon is simply a reflection of the greater light, and shows that God will rule through Israel night and day

 

The “crown of twelve stars” shows that her government will be a rule of righteous decrees which will be exercised through the twelve tribes. This is stated in Matthew 18:18. “Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

 

The woman is called a “wonder” or a “sign.” No nation on earth has ever been hated, and persecuted like the little nation of Israel. No matter where this woman goes, the serpent pursues her. History shows repeated attempts to destroy her. Yet, she is indestructible!  The hatred for Israel defies all logic. Like her man-child, she is hated without a cause. Her suffering and everlasting nature is indeed a wonder and a sign.

 

The two great “wonders” or “signs” seen in heaven answer the age-old questions of: Why do the nations hate Israel and seek her destruction? And, where do all her troubles come from?  The vision answers both questions. God said in Genesis 3:15, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” In these two personages we see the great conflict of the ages!

 

The woman is Israel in the Great Tribulation. John sees her there experiencing severe labor pains, “And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.”  Jeremiah’s description of this scene: “Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?” (Jeremiah 30:6).

 

MASTER, WHERE DWELLEST THOU? HE SAITH…COME AND SEE.

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By Ken Blue

 

Master, where dwellest Thou?

He saith, come, you will see.

We went to the mountain top,

For a view of history.

 

I dwelt long in Egypt;  

Four hundred years, or so.

Ignoring My presence there,

They were unwilling to go.  

 

Led through the awful sea, ,

They walked upon dry land.

How quickly they did forget;  

They were led by My own hand.  

 

I dwelt at Mount Sinai.

I gave My Holy Law.

The mountains did testify.

Yet, they ignored what they saw.

 

I fed them with manna,

And water from a stone.

They complained against Moses,

As if they were on their own.

 

All this great land I gave,

From mountains to the sea.

It flowed with milk and honey,

Safely they could dwell with Me.

 

 

I dwell among them now,

But they haven’t eyes to see.

But a time is coming soon,

When the whole earth will know me.

 

You ask, where do I dwell?

My dwelling’s everywhere.

And those with a heart of faith,  

Find I also dwell in there.