The social retreat of the season has begun, whether its VBS, a mission trip, camp or one of the many Christian retreats in private get away, or public place. It is time to meditate on God's word, and to have fellowship with other believers. Prehaps it is a time of new commitment or deciding you want to follow Jesus and know more about Him. Whatever the reason of your summer Christian retreat, consider all the fun you will have and invite a non believer. What will you be doing is loads of fun. From singing new songs, learning scripture, crafts, and sports is just to name a few. It is usually a planned fun activity.

Soon the dog days of summer will be upon us. The heat is soaring and all we want is a cool summer drink, from lemonade, ice tea, cool aid or even pina colada(virgin of course). Something to quench the thirst of that noon day sun. Jesus is the thirst quencher of our hearts. He quenches the heat of the world to allows to see his brightest, and ability to handle all that is going on in our life when we turn it over to him. As a deer pants for water so soul pants for the word of God. Jesus is the thirst quencher. He is living hope of our tomorrow.

Psalms 42:1-2 KJV
(1) To the chief Musician, Maschil, for the sons of Korah. As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
(2) My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?

Psalms 63:1 KJV
(1) A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;

John 4:13-15 KJV (13) Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: (14) But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (15) The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.

One of the most precious freedoms of the first five ammendment rights is freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of the press. This website is built on the foundation of God through Christ Jesus. Exercising my ammendment rights allows me to share the Gospel. It is these freedoms that is given to all Americans. Every American born in the "Good Old USA". When we think of faith it should not be just in our hearts but in our daily lives. Living out our faith and freedom in this great land we live in. Yet religious right extremist would like to destroy the freedom of others. That freedom to decide who and what you believe in. When extreme group decide you do not have right to free thought or expression, then what happens is blood shed.

There is point that needs to be taken note of that freedom of religions is only as good has the ability to allow others their same rights.

As a born again believer in Christ, it does not make me hate any other group, but it allows me to be in disagreement. It does not allow me to beat up on someone else because I disagree. It is the right to believe in peace with my fellow country men. The men and women who fought side by side believers and non believers alike to enable this freedom.

In the time of Gideon, God told him to cast down the idols of baal. Yet in time of Samuel, God turn over the idol of Dagon inside Dagon temple, where the ark was placed. In The time of Paul, he physically did nothing about the idols in Athens, but instead he used the stone with inscription of the unknown God for a sermon to tell about Jesus. If we want to see idols of satan over turned we must use the idol God established and his name is Jesus. Jesus is not a wooden statue, but a living being to draw all people to himself. How you fight is how God directs, but if your going to do it Christ way, you wil leave the idols of Satan alone, allow God to tear them down. For the religious battle will one day be destroyed with the appearance of our Savior. What freedoms do you enjoy. The right of freedom is for every American enjoy. God gave us a choice to believe, that is one freedom that can not be taken from man, but is placed in man's hands to decide for himself. Many people do lip service with never knowing the relationship with Jesus they can have. Choose God today and build your relationship with Jesus when you invite him into your heart. By inviting Jesus in you torn down the idols of Satan in your life.

Fourth of July is a day to celebrate and give thanks to God for our freedoms. Many families will be having the yearly barbeque, while others will be getting fireworks to set off, and putting up the flag in celebration of the day the began our independence, and impact our nation and the world. Francis Scott Key understood those freedoms as he wrote the Star Spangle Banner. Other songs have shaped the Fourth of July, From God Bless America, America the Beautiful and My Country Tis Of Thee. New songs hit the charts of American freedom since 911. And as the new generation shapes Fourth of July, 911, Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Flag Day are only reminds of those that lost their lives for our freedom. Men and women lost their lives for our earthly freedom, but only one Jesus lost His life and gained it back for our eternal freedom. Let us not forget the reason Jesus died for us, as we remember the reason men and women fought for our freedom, from Independence Day to 911.

May God bless you and America Too,

From the desktop of turtle30cshell.com
manager Christina Farris

The Rio Summer games are soon to begin. Many Americans as well as around the world sit and watch at the minimum highlights from the olympic games and at the most all the competitions that they are awake for. Let us pray for those that are honoring healthy competition between our nations this season. May God bless the atheletes as they entertain the world with their talents and skills.

P.S. Remember the training of athelete is not easy task, but every Christian is in training for God's race toward heaven. A healthy diet of food/God's Word and drinks/power of the Spirit along with discipline and rest, make for good runners

God is immutable, but Jesus was both immutable and mutable. Jesus was human flesh that was incorruptible before he became corruptible in the flesh and then became incorruptible. Yet Jesus being God was incorruptible, or without the ability to be destroyed because God is spirit and Christ's Spirit was God. Two forms together to explain our human ability to live for God through obedience to God's Spirit, even though physically we will die unless Christ returns. We will become incorruptible body in the army of God, yet today as a believer and humanly alive I am corruptible in the earthly since. To be incorruptible will not happen till heaven. We all must learn to resist temptations of the human body, whether it is gluttony(over eating, immorality, idoltary, stealing, and so forth. God's grace is sufficient when it come to our human mistakes, for we will never be God.