Category Archives: Best of Drew

Best of Drew

When God speaks, He Eventually Gets His way – Jonah

God did not give-up with Jonah. He still wanted Jonah to fulfill God’s original plan, purpose or burden that God called him for.

A Large Fish - Whale at SeaWorld, San Diego

A Large Fish – Whale at SeaWorld, San Diego

 In Jonah 3 it says that God spoke again to Jonah. God speaks again.  God again asked Jonah to go to Nineveh, the city He had originally commissioned him to go to. Eventually Jonah obeys, goes to that city and preaches, and as a result those people turned away from their unrighteousness and to God. See more at:  Jonah in the Bible

A Large Fish - Whale at SeaWorld, San Diego

A Large Fish – Whale at SeaWorld, San Diego

Originally published by Drew  December 31, 2012.

My Favorite Christian Devotionals and Study Resources

Besides the Bible, devotional and study books can be a great source of inspiration and encouragement. Some books just keep us on the right path theologically. Its great to receive encouragement from others.

 

February 2011

The Bible in 29 Seconds, an Animated Overview

The purpose of this video is to discover the God of Love and inspire people to get into the Bible and know Jesus Christ.

The text is: In the beginning God created the heavens and earth. God then created man in His image for His purpose and glory. Man disobeyed God which brought in sin, but God who loved the world sent His son, Jesus Christ who is God became man. He died on the cross for man’s sins, and was resurrected from the dead. Jesus gives eternal life to all those who believe in Him.

Written by Drew Haninger and first published on Nov 20, 2012 at YouTube.com/OliveTreeBible Posted on AnimatedFaith.com June 2, 2015

Beautiful Song: It is Well with My Soul

Such a beautiful Christian song, but it came out of a very difficult family situation. The background of this song video, a very moving story might help you grasp the emotion of the song: Father having lost four daughters in a shipwreck wrote this moving song when he returned to the place where the tragic event happened. This public domain song was written by Horatio G. Spafford in 1873. The music was composed by Philip P. Bliss in 1876.

Several of the sunset video segments are in 4k UHD video, you should notice their beautiful colors. So enjoy this music video. The words are:

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Refrain:
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!—
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Martin Luther – a Devotional

Martin Luther and the Bible
We all want to change the world, but in the 1500’s there were many men and women who helped to change the world, but none as much as the German monk-turned-professor Martin Luther. He helped reform Christian ways and tradition by speaking against the many errors of his day and comparing them to what the Bible actually teaches.

Justification by Faith
Let’s start with the most important New Testament doctrine that Luther help correct. So very important is the doctrine of justification by faith. Luther taught that the Scriptures, the Bible,  declare a sinner is justified by faith in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-9) and not by works of penance or anything we could do. It is by grace alone that a believer is saved, plus nothing. That gracious salvation would lead to a changed life of good deeds, not the other way around. So its grace alone plus nothing that I could add. Good deeds come out of God’s love and grace bestowed on us.

Martin Luther and Prayer
At one point Martin Luther wrote a letter to his wife expressing his concern over some issues.  Remember, Luther was a religious and somewhat a political lighting rod in his day. That stirred up some controversy.  In the midst of this trouble Luther wrote to his wife and in the latter a phrase was mentioned “Pray and Let God Worry”. In other words we pray and God has to take it from here on. So Pray and Let God Worry. Enjoy a short devotional video on “Pray, Let God Worry”
Here is a portion of one of Martine Luther’s prayers: “Heavenly Father, dear God, I am not worthy that I should lift up mine eyes or my hands to thee in prayer, but since thou hast commanded us to pray and has taught us how through Jesus Christ our Lord, I will say, ‘Give us this day our daily bread”. Luther was a man of prayer. He loved God, loved the Bible and loved prayer.

Money Does not Work, Only God’s Grace
Another problem that Luther wanted to fix was the medieval view of indulgences… a document Christians could buy which was supposed to pardon a person from the sins they had committed.  Money can be a problem if our heart is not right toward it. Luther criticized this teaching because he believed it replaced the Biblical doctrine of repentance (1 John 1:9-10). The Bible talks of “confession” not trying to pay God.

The Authority of the Bible
Another tradition Luther objected to was denying the authority of the Bible, by elevating religious traditions above the Old and New Testaments.  Luther saw the Bible as the top faith document and higher than anyone else’s thought or feelings.  Luther faithfully preached that the Bible, not the church, is the ultimate authority over matters of faith and life (Acts 5:29). Because the Bible was only allowed in Latin, an academic language, Luther chose to translate the Word of God into the German tongue so that any literate person in his land could read the Bible and learn its glorious message.

Every Believer is a Priest of the Most Holy God
Luther and his fellow Reformers also helped restore congregational singing, lay leadership, the sanctity of common work for the glory of God, and a renewed focus on the centrality of the gospel in every area of a Christian’s life. While Luther had real flaws, he played an undeniably important role in the development of theology and the church in the 16th century. Yes, like the rest of us, Luther was not perfect, but God used him just as he was with the help of God’s grace and love.

Conclusion
Martin Luther  loved God, loved the Bible and loved prayer. God used such a poor sinner, and so God can use us, also poor sinners, but its all by His love and grace.

Pray and Let God Worry

Pray and Let God Worry

Replace fear with FAITH

Faith always encourages us and moves us forward. Fear causes us to slow down, stop and go into paralysis mode making us afraid to do anything.

So watch this short video on “Replace fear with FAITH”

When we go to pray we need to drop the fear and have faith in God.

Even when the sun goes down and the clouds come in - replace fear with Faith

Even when the sun goes down and the clouds come in – replace fear with Faith

Courage means to keep making forward progress while you still feel afraid.

So turn fear into FAITH and replace fear with FAITH.  Don’t let fear and anxiety take over.

2 Timothy 1:7 God has not given us a spirit of fear. God has given us a spirit of power, and love and a sound mind. Fear makes our mind go into confusion.

Faith Energizes Us

Faith Energizes Us

Only accept a healthy relationship with the Lord, realizing He loves us and cares for us. Consider the verse in Proverbs “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”.

Don’t let fear stop you.

Some see giants and some look at the same situation and see grasshoppers (we are well able to overcome them)

Beautiful Columbia River

Beautiful Columbia River

Faith always encourages us and moves us forward.

 1 John 4:18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;  thy rod and thy staff they comfort me

Isa  41:10  Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
be not dismayed; for I am thy God:
I will strengthen thee;
yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness

Fear Not, just Pray

Fear Not, just Pray