Week Forty-Nine, 2017
LET THERE BE LIGHT
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
—Genesis 1:3
Let There Be Light is a 2017 American Christian drama film directed by and starring Kevin Sorbo and written by Dan Gordon and Sam Sorbo. The plot follows an atheist who goes through a near-death experience in an auto accident and converts to Christianity. Sean Hannity is the executive producer and appears in the film.
I highly recommend it as a must see. Christian movies often don’t do well at the box office, but this one raked in $1.7 million in the first weekend of its release. I won’t spoil your viewing by telling you about the no dry eyes ending of the film, but it is a great depiction of the illumination of light that comes from a salvation experience.
The leading characters (actually husband and wife in real life) are a husband and wife. He is an avid atheist and one of the country’s leading experts and author on the validity of atheism. She is a committed Christian, who continually prays for her ex-husband to come to faith. He greatly resists, and then through a series of unfolding events, some good and some bad, he confesses his faith in Jesus Christ. It would be difficult for anyone to view this film and not clearly hear the Gospel message.
For some, coming to faith is an instantaneous experience, but for most it is a gradual process until the light goes on. Just as the dawn proceeds from darkness to light, our journey of faith progresses from darkness to light and then the relationship with our Lord shines so brightly.
What Coming to Jesus is Not:
▪ It is not about repeating a sinner’s prayer
▪ It is not about walking down an aisle
▪ Is is not about filling out a Decision Card
What Coming to Jesus Is:
▪ Confessing your sins and seeing your sinfulness and realizing your desperate need for the Savior
▪ Accepting Jesus as your personal Savior
▪ Believing with your heart and not just your head
▪ Relying on, fully trusting in, leaning upon, and resting in — Him
▪ Believing that He is your Savior first and allowing the Holy Spirit to help you make Him your Lord too
▪ Believing that there is no other way to the Father in Heaven except by Jesus Christ alone
Where are you in your journey of faith?
Has your light come on?
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SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865, assassinated April 14, 1865) He was the 16th President of the United States of America. Under his courageous leadership, America survived the Civil War and remained the United States.
In 1846, when Lincoln was running for Congress from the seventh district of Illinois, a rumor began to spread that he was not a christian, to which he wrote the following:
“That I am not a member of any Christian Church, is true; but I have never denied the truth of the Scriptures; and I have never spoken with intentional disrespect of religion in general, or of any denomination of Christians in particular…I do not think I could, myself, be brought to support a man for office whom I knew to be an open enemy of, and scoffer at religion.”
__________
Paul Hovey said, “A blind man’s world is bounded by the limits of his touch; an ignorant man’s world by the limits of his knowledge; a great man’s world by the limits of his vision.”
__________
PERSONAL STORIES:
1. Today, I interviewed my grandmother for part of a research paper I’m working on for my Psychology class. When I asked her to define success in her own words, she said;
“Success is when you look back at your life and the memories make you smile.”
__________
2. Today, I asked my mentor – a very successful business man in his 70s- what his top 3 tips are for success. He smiled and said;
“Read something no one else is reading, think something no one else is thinking, and do something no one else is doing.”
__________
3. Today, after my 72 hour shift at the fire station, a woman ran up to me at the grocery store and gave me a hug. When I tensed up, she realized I didn’t recognize her. She let go with tears of joy in her eyes and the most sincere smile and said;
“On 9-11-2001, you carried me out of the World Trade Center.”
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QUOTES YOU CAN USE
Christianity is a fact based faith. Bob Sprinkle
A belief is something you will argue about. A conviction is something you will die for. Howard Hendricks
We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. Psalms 119:105
We will have to repent… not only for the… words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people. ML King
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©2017 John Grant | Florida State Senator (Ret.) | 10025 Orange Grove Drive | Tampa, FL 33618