I cannot stop caring.

This post was written many months ago, and since the gentelman has passed away I felt it appropriate to refresh the listing for people to read again. This was a great man of God that has influenced many people around the globe. I personally had the privilage of meeting him and hearing him speak on many occasions. He now resides in heaven where one day I will meet him again!

Please, feel free to comment on this post!

<<<<origional post>>>>

Nervous laughter came from different parts of the room, our lecturer was late and nobody knew where he was. Finally, five minutes after the bell, he walked in slowly, and leaning on the lectern he spoke. “I just got off the phone with my doctor, I have cancer, and you are the first to know about it.”

So we sat in class this morning and listened to our 76 year old guest lecturer speak about heaven. He was not very eloquent, but his words were powerful. His faith was overwhelming. People were close to tears.

Well, it is later in the day now, and the impact of that announcement has worn off. But I have been thinking…. That guy knows where he is going. He is confident in the fact that his home is going to be in heaven after he dies.

Don’t you want to know where you are going when you die? YOU CAN!

Please listen to me! Read what I have to write… this is how you can be sure you are going to heaven when you die!

1. Realize that you are a sinner, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) –we are all sinners, no matter how good we think we’ve been, there is no avoiding the fact that we have messed up.
2. Understand the punishment for sin; “for the wages of sin is death” (Romans 5:8). Hell. I cannot beat around the bush here. The punishment for sinning is eternity in hell.
3. Understand Christ’s sacrifice; “but God demonstrates His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8) He paid the price for our sin! He died so we would not have to! *remember the price of sin, death*
4. Trust in Christ! This is the final step! “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8,9)  You must depend on Christ to forgive your sins (take them away) and give you eternal life! That’s it!

Those are the steps. That is it! We are sinners, we deserve hell, but Jesus died for us so that we wouldn’t have to go, all we have to do is trust in his death and ask him for forgiveness and we will be saved!

Please, if you want to know where you’re going when you die, pray this prayer! It is not the prayer that saves you, it is trusting Jesus Christ that saves you, all the prayer is for is to tell God what you are doing.

“Dear God, I know I’m a sinner. I know my sin deserves to be punished. I believe Christ died for me and rose from the grave. I trust Jesus Christ alone as my savior. Thank you for the forgiveness and everlasting life I now have. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

If you prayed that prayer, please, comment and tell me about it! If you did not, comment and tell me why not! If you have any questions please comment!

I care about you guy’s, I don’t know you, but I care! I don’t want to see anyone die and go to hell. Please, please, please read what I have to say!

please... turn up the music while you are reading!

Don't let the world convince you that Christs sacrifice on the cross was a joke or farce.

Don't let the Christians convince you that you are not good enough to join their little "club". They are just as screwed up as the rest of us.  "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."-Romans 3:23

Allow me to expound for a minute.

Let's say we are in a courtroom, a trial is being held to determine weather or not we are innocent of a murder charge against us. We cannot plead innocent due to the fact that we have openly admited to the crime on several occasions. All we have to do now is convince the judge we are "good enough" to not go to jail, or at the very least get a lighter sentence,

So we plead, and make, what in our own minds, seems like a very persuasive case; "I have given to charity, I go to church, I have alway's been there for people in thier times of need. I have fed the hungry, paid my taxes on time, I almost never speed, and up untill this point I have never broken the law! I am a good person, please drop this case against me."

To some, this might sound like an honestly good case. But there is an inherent problem with this argument. There is nothing that nullifies (cancels out) the fact that we commited the act of murder. Not one of the things we have done in the past will get us out of this trouble.

Somehow that is the argument we want to use when it comes to Christ and heaven. A huge percentage of the population believes that being a "good person" will qualify us for citizenship in heaven.

God has a different plan though. "the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our lord." Romans 6:23

We are inheritly condemed to hell the minute we sin. The first lie we tell, the first desire we have to steal, the first time we have sex utside of marrage, the first time we look at porn, the moment we willingly sin we condem ourselves. Much in the same way we condem ourselves to prison or the death penalty by commiting murder.

But lets focus on the end of that verse for a sec... "the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."

What does he mean by that? Is there a way out? What if someone already died for you? What if they took your place?

The awesome part about the answer to that question is that YES there is a way out! Here, see for yourselves...

"For God demonstrates His own love towards us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us!"Its that "for us" thing that is the most important. Christ took our place. He died in our place, remember it said "the penalty of sin is death"? He already died for you! He took your place!

That is not the end of the story though. We still have to make a choice. "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved!" Romans 10:9

If that is what you want to do, by all means do it! ask God to forgive you, tell him you believe that Christ died and rose again three day's later. Tell him you are going to trust in his sacrifice for the promise of eternal life!

All it takes is an act of trust. Will you pray with me if you made this descision?

"Dear God, I am coming to you right now thanking you for the love you have shown me through Christs death. Thanking you for the sacrifice you made for me. Please forgive me of my sins, wipe my slate clean! Lord I believe that You died on the cross for me, I believe you rose again three day's later. I trust in the fact that your sacrifice will allow me a way into heaven. Save me. I pray to you now, for the first time, in the name of Christ, amen.

If you said that prayer and you really meant it would you please let me know? E-mail me at ohiojonmail@yahoo post a comment on this sight! I want to send you a Bible and some other stuff you might find usefull as a new believer in Christ.

For those at home who knew me as "hardcore Jon"  I can tell you now, there is nothing as hardcore as telling others about Christ!

I come from a pretty rough past, kidnapped, neglected and abused as a kid I quickly learned how to steal and lie to make ends meet. My dad found my two brothers and I in Alaska when I was ten. My brothers adjusted fine but I ended up getting in so much trouble that I ended up in a Juvenile detention center when I was 12. They put me in a foster home when I got out where I met other kids on the outside who were just like me. I ended up getting into drugs and immediately landed myself back in ju-v. That is where I spent my entire teenage life.

I was 18 years old when I trusted Christ. I was on my bed in a jail cell after listening to a pastor who was preaching earlier that night. I prayed right their and I have never been the same.

Don't get me wrong I wasn't the perfect Christian guy, in fact I had a lot of growing to do. I slipped up a lot. I got out of jail when I was 19. This is the point where I should have started going to church and finding some new friends but I didn't. I fell into the same old traps I had been falling into my entire life! I resumed smoking, drinking and expanded my use of drugs to the stuff they don't even talk about on TV.

I am going to skip the next few years so I can say this. I DEDICATED my life to Christ four months ago. I chose to make Jesus not only my savior but my lord. All I have to say is that this is the most hardcore thing I have ever done in my life.

Have you trusted Christ? If you have, have you really made him the Lord of your life? if you haven't your missing out. The guy died for you. He chose to live on this earth for the sole purpose of making a way for you to go to heaven. He got the snot beat out of him for us.

There is nothing you can do to go to heaven. No-matter how good you are you are never good enough. The only way that has been provided is through Christ. Believe that he died on the cross for you and rose again three day's later, trust that his death and resurrection is the only way you can possibly get to heaven, tell God about it by praying. that’s all their is to it.