Separation

Distance cannot diminish the bond we have with God. The bond we have is not one we work at, it is there, it just is. It is called Grace... One way you could describe grace is to liken it to the air around us. You can do nothing to remove the air from around you, nor can you out run it, nor destroy it. We live in it. And like air Grace is a gift given by a loving God whom knows our weaknesses, and CHOSESS to love us despite them. Choosing to believe otherwise, will not harm grace nor will it remove you from it. It will simply remain.

Are there consequences for our sin, YES. Are there consequences for our misdeeds and wrong doing to others, YES. But Grace remains, the Love God has for you cannot be broken! More later. Out of time.

Speak to me…

The radio turned on, and as I do many days I laid in bed and began to speak to my Lord! My question was how do I know when I hear from you Lord? Please speak to me to help me understand… That was pretty much it word for word. I pressed snooze as I laid there and believe it or not, I fell back to sleep…

7:17 am… Queue the radio again…. In big green numbers I see 7:17. I guess I nodded off again.

"Look up John 7:17", In my ½ awake and ½ asleep stage I heard a small voice say. Strange I thought as I hit snooze again…

I don’t remember exactly what time I did get up today, one of the blessings of being the boss I guess, but in the back of my mind I knew I was supposed to look up some scripture, but couldn’t for the life of me remember what it was… John 3:17 kept coming to mind but when I looked it up, I thought well that was just me talking to my self, and I put the bible away and took another sip of my coffee! Then I remembered it was 7 O’clock when I heard the voice not 3 O'clock. So I looked up that scripture.

John 7:17 (New American Standard Bible)
17"(A)If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself.

And with the faith like a child, it kind of made sense. So that was today. I guess I am willing to do his will! Or want to be willing! So did God just answer a Question with a Question? I don’t know but I do know that it cool and it made me happy! It is nice to be simple minded! Trevor OUT.

Practicing forgotten Gifts

Mark 9:23-24 23" 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes."
24Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

I AM THAT FATHER!

Some background

A long long time ago, in a land not that far away, a young impressionable boy of 17 was at a Pentecostal meeting where speakers came and talked of this POWER, this HOLY SPIRIT…
Now 13 years later, I am reminded of those meetings where I was filled/baptized in the HOLY SPIRIT! The single most empowering event in my life, when I experienced (for the first time) LIFE in this Christian walk, and Gods love for ME?! I saw with my little eyes, people who had demons, on or in them, and those demons come out, I heard them speak… I saw God touch people, in such a way that their physical body could not stand, could not function normally, and also experienced such an encounter my self! I prayed for people and God moved through me, to touch people in that way, and pride crept in… At 17, I thought I was pretty cool to be able to do this… I thought to my self, and maybe even said it to a couple of people… My youth pastor quickly stomped that out! I believe his words were “You know that had nothing to do with YOU”!!! Ouch, that sucks, and it hurt, and he was right! I was willing, and that was all it had to do with me. More on that later…

The important part is: God took time to speak to Trevor!!!!

Do you realize how amazing that statement is? GOD, you know the guy who spoke and all we know came to be, Spoke to Trevor!!! How could I continue to go on living the same life after that point?

Well it came to pass that distraction after distraction came into his life, and being young and foolish he chased nearly all of them. And as time passed the memory of what God had done for him faded to a distant foggy memory. There were times in his life where he would remember, and yet the distractions would come. Now I am 30 years old, and last weekend I was reminded of who JESUS is, and who the Holy Spirit is and why he is here! So now I practice, I will practice praying for people again, and sharing my testimony with them, and loving them. OUT OF TIME I HAVE TO RUN MORE LATER!

2 Corinthians 10:8For even if I boast somewhat freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than pulling you down, I will not be ashamed of it.

The "Thanking" has me!?

Thankfulness… If there is such a thing… grabbed me this A.M. as I awoke. I stared up that the ceiling with the sound of my alarm clock going off… I hit the snooze button and like so many other morning, I began to ask for a blessing or for something from God… But this morning was different. I thought, as I laid in bed, how like every other morning, I am constantly asking for a hand out from my creator. And decided to just thank Him for all of the blessing I could think of… Time passed and I realized that I had so much to be thankful for, it was hard to ask for more. In America, despite your political, or religious views, you have a lot to be thankful for.

So that is all. It has been a long, long while since I have posted, and that time is now over. I am thankful for that!

Blessings to you today.

Trevor out.

Letter to a friend?

Point Way Church In Brainerd!

Hey, we have never formally met, but like most Minnesotans, I have seen you in concert. I am currently heading up the worship team… (ME) for this new church plant. We are planning to launch in September. Currently we are a cell group based church we have 3 cells, of 6-10 people in each group, hard to nail down that number yet as people are always coming and going.

My pastor, Steve Erickson, contacted you to see if you would come and help us… I am an insurance agent here in Brainerd, (who knows how that happened), but can play guitar, and sing, (a little of both) but I am not an experience worship leader… , I would say I am a worshiper, and love the Lord, and have a strong desire to bring people into the presence of God, but when it comes to the actual practice of Doing the worship leading, I have always helped out, but not often been the leader.

This is the second church I have helped to plant. And may be it is because I am in sales, but I know that unless you ask, they aren’t going to know you would like them to help. SO this is me asking. If you would like more information! Or would like to meet us, we will be holding a BBQ this Saturday the 28th starting at 11 at the pastors house. 218-838-9802 Steve Erickson for directions, Or my self 218-251-2107. I know with the lack of notice you will probably not be able to come, but if you are free, you are invited to come up chill out and grill out with us may be learn a little more about our vision, and how we want the family of God to be realized here in Brainerd!

****, I would love your help, I need some one who can give me some pointers, on leading people into the presence of God through worship. Even if you cannot commit to coming up, I would still love your ideas as to what a good worship set consists of, song ideas, tip, and or any wisdom you think my be helpful for a guy who feels like he is over his head. Thank for your time.

Sincerely
Trevor F. Tobin.

Encouragement, and a cattle prod!

Encouragement, and a cattle prod!

Hey guys, I just wanted remind every one to examine their hearts today. I was doing that this morning, and needed to scrap away layer upon layer of apathy. Thought may be some of you would be dealing with same. I want to encourage all of you to invite Godly people, who you respect to come along and help us grow this church! To help reach the lost, to help create a church where you don’t need to be perfect, or be afraid to share your struggles with the pastor, or your bother and sisters in the church. The family of God needs to be realized, as there are times when our earthly families will let us down. But I would challenge all of you to go step outside your comfort zone today, and talk to that person or people you have been hesitant to. If you are just waiting for the right time, consider this your notice, Today is that day, and now is that time. Don’t be afraid to share that love that saves you and I, with those who are searching. They may not realize that their actions are all pointing to the hole that is with in them, no matter how much of this world they throw in there, it will never be filled. We are the keepers of the well that never runs dry, that will fill the void in there lives.

Thanks for striving with me to plant a church that will be a light to those in darkness, that will be that well for those who thirst, that will be the safe haven when they are in need and will Point the way to Christ!

God bless!

Your Brother
Trevor

"Gun-Free Zones Are Not Safe"

by John R. Lott Jr.

Americans' fears over the safety of schools continues.
Last Monday, three colleges and four K-to-12 schools were shut down by threats of violence.
This week over 25,000 college students at 300 chapters in 44 states belong to a group, Students for Concealed Carry on College Campuses, that will carry empty handgun holsters to protest their concerns about not being able to defend themselves.
With the first anniversary of the Virginia Tech attack last week and the discussions that it created, we clearly have not been able to put that and other attacks behind us. There are good reasons why the safety measures adopted over the last year to speed up response times or hiring more police haven't eliminated the fear people feel.
The attack earlier this year at Northern Illinois University proved that even six minutes was too long. It took six minutes before the police were able to enter the classroom, and in that short time five people were murdered. Compared to the Virginia Tech and other attacks, six minutes is actually record breaking speed, but it was simply not fast enough.
The Thursday before the NIU murders five people were killed in a city council chambers in Kirkwood, Mo. There was even a police officer already there when the attack occurred. But as happens time after time in these attacks, when uniformed police are there, the killers either wait for the police to leave the area or they are the first people killed. In Kirkwood, the police officer was killed immediately when the attack started. People cowered or were reduced to futilely throwing chairs at the killer.
There is a problem that people just are unwilling to recognize.
Just like attacks last year at the Westroads Mall in Omaha, Neb., or Trolley Square Mall in Salt Lake City or the recent attack at the Tinley Park Mall in Illinois or all the public schools attacks, all these cases had one thing in common: They took place in "gun free zones," where private citizens were not allowed to carry their guns with them.
The malls in Omaha and Salt Lake City were in states that let people carry concealed handguns, but private property owners are allowed to post signs banning guns and those malls were among the few places in their states that chose to post such signs. In the Trolley Square attack an off-duty police officer fortunately violated the ban and stopped the attack. The attacks at Virginia Tech or the other public schools occurred in some of the few areas within their states that people are not allowed to carry concealed handguns.
It is not just recent killings that are occurring in these gun-free zones. Multiple-victim public shootings keep on occurring in places where guns are banned. Nor are these horrible incidents limited to just gun-free zones in the US.
In 1996 Martin Bryant killed 35 people at Port Arthur in Tasmania, Australia. In the last half-dozen years, European countries including France, Germany and Switzerland have experienced multiple-victim shootings. The worst school attack in Germany claimed 17 deaths, another 14 deaths; one attack in Switzerland claimed the lives of 14 regional legislators.
At some point you would think that something is going on here, that these murderers aren't just picking their targets at random. Yet, when one thinks about it, this pattern isn't really too surprising.
Most people understand that guns deter criminals. The problem is that instead of gun-free zones making it safe for potential victims, they make it safe for criminals.
Criminals are less likely to run into those who might be able to stop them. Everyone wants to keep guns away from criminals, but the problem is who is more likely to obey the law.
A student expelled for violating a gun-free zone at a college is extremely unlikely ever to get into another college. A faculty member fired for a firearms violation will find it virtually impossible to get another academic position. But even if the killer at Virginia Tech had lived, the notion that the threat of expulsion would have deterred the attacker when he would have already faced 32 death penalties or at least 32 life sentences seems silly.
Letting civilians have permitted concealed handguns limits the damage from attacks. A major factor in determining how many people are harmed by these killers is the amount of time that elapses between when the attack starts and when someone with a gun is able to arrive on the scene.
In cases from the church shooting in Colorado Springs, Colo., last December, where a parishioner who was given permission by the minister to carry her concealed gun into the church quickly stopped the murderer, to an attack last year in downtown Memphis, to the Appalachian Law School, to high schools in such places as Pearl, Miss., concealed handgun permit holders have stopped attacks well before uniformed police could possibly have arrived.
Twice this year armed Israeli citizens have stopped terrorist attacks at schools (once by an armed teacher and another by an armed student). Indeed, despite the fears being discussed about the risks of concealed handgun permit holders, I haven't found one multiple-victim public shooting where a permit holder has accidentally shot a bystander.
With about 5 million Americans currently with concealed handgun permits in the U.S. and states starting having right-to-carry laws for as long as 80 years, we have a lot of experience with these laws, and one thing is very clear: Concealed handgun permit holders are extremely law-abiding and lose their permits for any gun-related violation at hundredths or thousandths of one percentage point. We also have a lot of experience with permitted concealed handguns in schools.
Prior to the 1995 Safe School Zone Act, states with right-to-carry laws let teachers or others carry concealed handguns at school, and several states still allow this today. And there is not a single instance that I or others have found where this produced a single problem. There are today even some universities, including large public universities such as Colorado State University and the University of Utah, that let students carry concealed handguns on school property.
With all the news media coverage of the types of guns used and how the criminal obtained the gun, at some point the news media might begin to mention the one common feature of these attacks: they keep occurring in gun-free zones.
Gun-free zones are a magnet for these attacks. But, even without the media, considering that 15 more states this year debated legislation to let concealed handguns on school campuses, possibly the issue is becoming clear anyway.
John Lott is the author of Freedomnomics and a senior research scientist at the University of Maryland.