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"I hope he found Jesus."
I find myself and a slew of other Christians saying that very phrase when someone dies. More often than not, I hear it when a celebrity dies. “I sure hope they found Jesus.”

Steve Irvin, Bernie Mac, Michael Jackson...

Of course there is nothing wrong with that saying. It is wishing for the best. But are Christians called to wish –especially when it is too late. What were we doing BEFORE the wishing? Were we praying? Do we remember that celebrities are people too? They are real people, with real souls, that have a real need to be really saved by a real God.
We may shake our heads at the living celebrities as they live it up as the world says it is fun to do. The constant barrage of media can be brutal all by itself. Many Christians struggle to find a couple moments of sanity to sit down with the Lord and just listen, soak up peace, and learn how to live a more excellent life. Us without paparazzi, without the woes of the rich, and innumerable opportunities to fall into risky behaviors. Peer pressure is magnified exponentially in the celeb world.
What do we do, as Christians who believe in God. Hell. Afterlife. Heaven. Mercy. Grace. And JESUS CHRIST?
Do we live in the power of intercessory prayer? Praying for those who otherwise are temporarily disconnected with God? We grow up with celebrities. We feel like we know them sometimes. We may have secret crushes on some, dress like others, but do we pray for any? Really pray? And Believe? Think of the influence (God’s Favor) that would be alive for the kingdom if some of the most influential people in th world got saved. I mean REALLY on fire for Christ? Personal, intimate, amazing relationship. Think Opera. Will Smith. Adam Sandler. Will Ferrell. Jim Carrey. Insert whoever is really popular right now. (You can tell I have no clue by my list probably!)
What ripple effect can your prayer have?

The last few years I have found myself praying for my loved ones every day, then those in my state, my country, and finally the whole world! Prayers for my own selfish concerns only no longer feel comfortable to me.

So ... every day I pray this: (after nudging by the Holy Spirit smile

Father, I pray for every man, woman, and child - past, present, and future - on this planet and any others you have. I claim their salvation, their healing, deliverance, the infilling of the Holy Spirit, and you setting them forth for ministry in Jesus' Name, Amen.

It's all I can pray anymore.

And yes, I spent a GREAT deal of time yesterday, throughout the day as I went about my business, praying that both Michael Jackson, AND Farrah Fawcett were ready to meet the Lord when they died. The day before, I was praying for Ed McMahon.

'bashi, as far as your question, didn't Jesus tell someone that whether someone made it or not was not up to us? Seems to me I remember something like that ....

In the meantime, prayer is a powerful thing, and yes people have free will and have to chose, but God never gives up on someone. I keep reminding Him that He said if He was lifted up, He would draw ALL MEN to Himself ..... ^^ ..... and as Oral Roberts once got from the Lord:
"No man is able to stand at the brink of eternity unshaken."
They get that last chance, and even if it's only a second, and their heart begins to turn, God's going to accept that.
So many people in those sudden death situations have spoken about how time seemed to slow down to the point that it stopped. In that one second that we see, there may be a HUGE amount of time for them to have a conversation with God. He is in the salvation business ... not as some believe, the damning business. He is not willing that ANY should perish ... but that ALL should come to salvation.

He truly is AWESOME.

And since time is a created thing and God sees all past, present, AND future equally in this one moment ..... *TIME!* ..... I see nothing wrong with praying after someone died that they had a chance to accept Him before they died ..... time is not a limit to the Almighty.

*blink, blink* sorry for the rant ..... 3nodding

Love. Now that's a concept I haven't contemplated in a long time. A long time.


Yes Obi-Wan Kenobi said something similar to that, I stole it from him.

Seriously though, I think (I won't say for sure) basically all you're saying Poem is to love people. People who are alive (though not necessarily leaving out the dead. I still love my deceased father, but what's more important is loving those who are alive). To love all people because they're the ones who need it. They're the one's who "count" in a sense. And we need to act now, not wait until something bad happens like the Clone Wars or the Brood Wars. Maybe a T-Virus outbreak. Or Aldeeran could be blown up!

This is a little off topic, but I'm curious to see what beaufleur and Poem (and anyone who wants to chime in). Not to make this about me, but the subject is related to my experiences over the past year. When I say I haven't contemplated love for a long time, I mean it. Mostly I've only contemplated the horrors of life. The atrocities that happen. I've thought about how life really is compared to the ideal life. Ideally, everyone loves one another. There is no war, crime, bias, poverty, bigotry, factions, etc. While everyone is different, they are of one mind and purpose. I guess before last year where I was living I thought perhaps life was that way. Of course, I knew that bad things were happening, but I didn't really let it in, you know? Life where I lived was perfect for me. I had friends, was attending a good school, wasn't poor nor rich (just the way I like it), and the church I was going to had members (That I knew of) that were one mind and purpose, yet so distinctly different that everyone was known and appreciated for who they are. That was the ideal life.

Yet, when that all went crashing down on me, I let the horrors in. Life isn't the ideal life. Evil runs rampant. Poverty is a big issue, even in a country that is rich like the U.S (or very, very bankrupt....). War and famine are big deals. Not that I didn't know that, but I just didn't know that, you know? Know...know....know...oh right, anyway, after letting it in that life can be pretty crappy, I forgot love. Real love. The "self sacrificing" kind of love. The love that cares. No, I suppose I didn't forget it then. I forgot it when I started to see God the Tyrant rather than God is love. That's when I forgot love. When I saw God as a despot, the idea of "I love you for you" kind of love was replaced by "I love you because I benefit. I love you because I get reward. I love you because I'm awesome." I'm reminded of a few songs as I type this...one is Viva La Vida by Coldplay.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44xirQ55IgA

The song is basically about kings living for themselves and for their glory, and then having their lives crumble on them, changing them for the better (I think).

I guess where I'm getting at in this rambling ramble is that I forgot about love. It left me. Replaced by bitter, bitter selfishness. The kind I thought God was like. How do you two maintain your love so that you do not fall into the trap I fell into? What keeps you on track?

Heh .... we're all such geeks .... I LOVE your Star Wars references!!! ^^

For me, sometimes it's a struggle .... BUT .... I was immersed for YEARS in a black, desperate hole of despair. Especially growing up. Almost instinctively, I started putting quotes or posters or cards that were inspirational or helpful up on my walls. So that everywhere I looked on the walls was something beautiful, and lovely, and uplifting. There was ugliness all around me, but somehow by meditating on these beautiful things, I began to hope ... just little by little .... that maybe .... just maybe, my life could be beautiful too.

I will post the very first thing that ever got me thinking positively when I'm done with this post, and I will follow with other things that my eyes found in the depths of despair. I was either going to find some reason to keep going or I was just going to die, and I thought that maybe, if I held on, maybe things would change. Maybe someday I wouldn't be around abusive people and kids insulting me and my brother beating me up and on and on.

Even now .... I found in the last couple of weeks that HOW I feel is so closely controlled by how I THINK. What you think actually guides your emotions! So if we're thinking depressive thoughts all the time, we end up depressed, etc. It IS possible to begin to train your mind to look at the good, not the evil all around you. The same place that you live has evil going around, but it has beautiful butterflies flying .... have you ever looked closely at a dragonfly?? They're STUNNING!! little children are laughing, little old couples are holding hands .... if you look .... you will find the sweetness in life! It's all around you!

Jesus said, 'as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.' ... what we think about MAKES us who we are.

And God says in the old testament to place those things before our eyes that seem good and pleasant to us, that we want and desire. If we want good things and a happy life, we need to put those things before our eyes .... see them .... think about them .... (think of the old saying, 'stop and smell the roses!!' They're there .... are you smelling???) allow their beauty and sweetness to touch our soul, heal our hearts, and inspire us to bring goodness and love to all around us as well as to ourselves.

THAT, my very sweet, very tender, sensitive brother is how my love stays on track. Have I fallen how the track a few times?? Oh yeah! Almost did tonight ... I was SOOO furious with my Honey .... and so tempted to just end things here and now and I had to really go to God and get His wisdom, and whether he is my true spouse or not, I have to be willing for God to teach us both things, and if I just quit this thing in a huff, then there are things God CANNOT teach him and I.

Charles Swindoll says that our attitude is 90% of what we think about, and only 10% of what happens to us!! That's incredible!!!

Ponder this poem I list after this post .... it took my reciting it over and over and over .... I placed it on the windowsill as a young teen and memorized it while washing the dishes .... it took doing that for months and months and months .... to BEGIN to put a tiny, tiny spark into my heart that maybe .... a happy life WAS possible for me.

God used this poem BEFORE I even became a Christian to begin to softly put cracks in my very hard, very black heart. It helped soften my heart so that I could be open to receiving Him.

Oh ... just one more thing, I grew up during the hippie era and even though they get a bad rap, they were about ONE major thing .... LOVE!! I was surrounded by posters that advocated Love, not war and so many other AWESOME inspirational posters! You can still find them today, so I started to see hope in drugged-out, bombed-out-of-their-skulls hippies .... wow .... go figure!! (sometimes God shows up disguised as hippies .... ^^ .... or Obi-Wan, or whoever He has to use to get our attention ... even perhaps .... mmmmm .... maybe .... Optimus Prime!!! ^^ )

Here's a few of their sayings:

MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR

GIVE PEACE A CHANCE

DON'T LET THE TURKEYS GET YOU DOWN

ALL WE NEED IS LOVE (yes, that was from Beatles song ^^ it was also a poster! Don't know which came first!! wink )

There are SOOO many!! Google 60's hippie posters!! wink

Love you bro. Hang in there.

Love you too Poem.

heart heart heart

whee

I used this last month in a sermon at my church. It's not until right now that I realized that you posted this here, and I had read it before.