Psalm 68:29, 34-35 (the real power)

* Welcome God every morning before work by taking ~5 min to read this Living In Faith Exchange (LIFE) Group devotion (life-devotions.blogspot.com), which has snippets from Living Faith (livingfaith.com).

Show forth, O God, your power, the power, O God, with which you took our part... Behold, his voice resounds, the voice of power: "Confess the power of God!" Psalm 68:29, 34-35

Living Faith snippets: "With His rising from the dead, Jesus shows me that the only real power is love, the option that can never be taken away, the one decision that always lies within my ultimate control." by Claire J. King

Pat nuggets: Neo-Atheism fueled by Secularization & New Age movement

* Bishop William Lori wrote in the May issue of Columbia, "A resurgence of atheism is under way. Its advocates take advantage of an increasingly secular culture to rehash old and shaky arguments. To counter neo-atheism...live our faith with integrity and love...deepen our awareness of why the Church remains confident in the power of reason, even when unaided by the light of faith, to arrive at the Truth that God exists. Enlightened by faith, we more readily see the reasonableness of maintaining God's existence. Faith does not destroy reason but enables it to look more competently beyond itself. Only then does reason perceive the dangers of godlessness to human dignity [i.e. life issues]."

* Neo-Atheism is also being fueled by the New Age movement, which is having spirituality without God (?). With our current culture, I usually describe a true follower of Christ as "faithful" rather than religious (interpreted judgemental) or spiritual (feeds New Age movement). For perspective on the impact of secularization and the New Age movement...in Germany only 47% of Germans believe in God, while 25% believe in a "spirit or life force" (New Age) and 25% believe in nothing (Neo-Atheism). In Denmark, only 31% of Danish believe in God, while 49% believe in a "spirit or life force" and 19% believe in nothing. For many, Christianity is being stripped of faith (atheism), becoming just a social endeavor or a noble way of life. The only way to identify where our friends, family, and "neighbors" stand with their faith is to invite them to dialogue and pray. For example, the Denmark stats motivated me to invite my Danish cousin (whom I assumed was a believer) to join the LIFE Devotions group. Her reply, "Faith is a very delicate matter. I have never told you about my faith because I know that you believe in God which I don't. I believe in 'the big bang' [who caused the big bang?]. I believe that some of the 'stories' in the Bible have taken place to some extent and I believe that The Ten Commandments are a good way of life. So in that way I am a Christian! There is so much more to say about this matter - as I can tell from your blog - but I will leave it here!" My reply, "Your response did not surprise me based on my experience and research with God being purged from Western Europe. For example, only 31% of Denmark believes in God...you are in the majority! Faith is not a delicate matter for me...feel free to fire away any questions you have. Based on creation (Rom 1:20), science (I have a PhD in analytical/nano science), and my experience (miracles)...God is alive and well (John 3:16)! Ok for me to add you to the devotion distribution list as a way to experience this other perspective and stay connected with your American family more routinely?"

* Bottom line, let's not assume our family, friends, and "neighbors" believe in God...secularization may be hardening their hearts and suffocating their faith...invite them to join the LIFE Devotions group to plug into "the real power" of God (Scripture, fellowship, prayer)...which is needed to maintain our eyes of faith in the Western culture.

Our Prayers: All (thanksgiving prayers), Pat Castle (end abortion, soldiers, enemies), Kay Castle (end all crimes against children), Todd Austell (tumor check), Vicki Miller (cancer treatment), Carol Nesbitt (nephew's baby), Pam McGushin (mom's depression, Cindy's cancer treatment), Tom Tenpenny (Anna's cancer treatment), Dale Sundermann (his Mom), Jenny Senour (job interview)

Through Christ for ProLife,

Pat

Phil 4:13

* Today's Bible readings at www.usccb.org/nab/today.shtml.

* Prayer: If you have a prayer request, simply send it to our distribution list at life-group-distro@googlegroups.com. Prayer connects us with God's will & His miracles, thereby changing us & helping others (so let's pray daily!). Wayne Watson lyrics, “When God's people pray, there is hope reborn, there is sin forgiven, and miracles you can't explain await!” "If you pray that God will move a mountain and He doesn’t, assume Christ wants you to climb it instead & see Him."

* Defend the unborn: ProLife websites at life-devotions.blogspot.com. 'Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don’t stand back and let them die' (Prov 24:11). 'Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you' (Jer 1:5). 'It is a great poverty that a child must die that you might live as you wish' Blessed Mother Teresa. Click for Prayer to End Abortion.

* Share the Good News: Let's joyfully live out the Good News and gladly tell others about it (Mark 16:15)! Let's make room to share with non-believers (be a friend, make a friend, lead your friend to Christ)...and work on perpetual re-evangelization of ourselves and those close to us (Western culture), drawing closer to God's will by way of daily prayer (real relationship) and following Christ's example of selfless love, mercy, and service...
* Let's invite family, friends, and our "neighbors" to join the LIFE Devotions group, providing routine spiritual connection and strength for our faith communities.