Thank God we have been blessed with another four years of George W. Bush as President.Now maybe I can move on to other things and get back to Rockin'! My new Band is working on a new demo cd soon to be released! I'm excited about this new music and should be releasing this in the months ahead. Meanwhile stop by for current changes  every week and tell me what you think please!

I have spent the last three days having a garage sale. I have a lot of ìjunkî in my home that I have been wanting to get rid of for a long time, so I thought this would be the perfect way to do it. I actually didnít realize how much work it was going to be. Thank God for my Mom who came and helped a lot. She is ìThe Garage Sale Queen!î

At then end of the day, I was very tired and very sore (carrying everything around a lot). But I was able to turn some junk that I didnít need into some cash that will help pay some bills.

As I lay down to sleep last night, I was thinking about how I would celebrate Easter today. Besides Church, I planned to go out to dinner with my parents and a few friends. Then I thought I would spend some time in the Word reading the account of Christí death and resurrection.

As I got up this morning, I realized that I was not going anywhere. My whole body is sore from the last three days, so much so, that I can hardly walk. My arms, back, legs - all feel like jelly! So I decided to check out my emails and also the message board here on the site. One of the questions that someone asked me on the ìAsk Pastor Bobî
section was what my favorite hymn was. That was easy. ìIt Is Well With My Soul.î That song has always been a real blessing to me. But today, after I answered his question, the song began to ring into my head again. This time, like many times before, with new meaning.

ìWhen peace, like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll - Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul.î

Before I quote the rest of the song, I want to tell you how the song was written in 1873 Ö

Horatio Spafford was a well known Christian lawyer in Chicago, who had great holdings in real estate in the fast-growing frontier town. He had been led into a deeper dedication of his life and wealth to the Lord through his association with D.L Moody and Henry Moorehouse, the English Bible teacher who had come to Chicago and had preached seven sermons on John 3:16. In 1871 the great tragedy of fire struck Chicago and in a matter of a few hours much of Mr. Spaffordís real estate holdings were nothing but ashes. This proved a real test for him, but little did he know there would be a far greater testing for him in the not-too-distant future.

After the fire, most of young Chicago lay in ruins. The first building erected on the ashes, was a building built by Dr. Moody called the North Side Tabernacle. It was at this place that Mr. Spafford kept himself occupied in helping those whose loss in actual money was not as great as his; but, like the widow who gave all, they had lost all. He was fortunate for he still had his law practice, his family, and also had some equity left.

In November of 1873, some two years after the fire, many of the schools in Chicago had not yet been rebuilt and so Mr. Spafford decided that he would take his family to England where his children could enroll in an English Academy and not be held back in their education.

Just before they were ready to leave, a last-minute business development made it necessary for Mr. Spafford to remain in Chicago and to send his wife and children ahead. He would come later, on another ship.

The Spafford family arrived safely in New York and boarded the ship Villa de Havre. Soon they were on their way to England, but in mid-ocean there was a collision between their ship and an English sailing ship. The Villa de Havre floundered and sank, taking with her to the bottom of the ocean most of those onboard, including the Spaffordís four daughters. Mrs. Spafford was found barely conscious but clinging to a piece of wreckage. While aboard the rescue ship which was taking her and the other survivors to England, she was able to draft a short message, which was sent to her husband in Chicago. It read, ìSaved. Alone.î

When Mr. Spafford received this message, the tragedy of the fire seemed but nothing in comparison to what this cablegram implied. Money and burned buildings could be replaced but his children were gone! It was through these clouds of darkness and despair that there shone, into the heart of H.G. Spafford, the bright light of Godís promise. God would not forsake him in this trying hour no matter what the circumstances. Peace like a river or sorrows like sea billows - with God all is well!

Captured by this thought, Mr. Spafford quickly penned the words of the song. When he finished writing the words, he took the poem to a friend who gave the words a melody. This song that was born in adversity became a strength and encouragement for millions of people all over the world.

Here is the whole song Ö

ìWhen peace, like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll - Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul.

ìTho Satan should buffet, tho trials should come, Let this blessed assurance control. That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

ìMy sin - O the bliss of this glorious thought. My sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more; Praise the Lord, Praise The Lord, O my soul.

ìAnd Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll; The trumpet shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, ìeven soî it is well with my soul!î

Needless to day, in my solitude today, I am having a WONDERFUL Easter. God has, once again, reminded me of His lavish grace and provisions for my life. He has cause my heart to rejoice in my salvation. (And if I can get a bit more mobile, I can still make it for lunch with my parents!)

You see, the true meaning of Easter is not tucked away in an Easter basket or in a new Easter hat for Church. It is the glad reminder of our personal relationship with the risen Lord that causes our hearts to skip a beat when we are reminded of His love and faithfulness in all areas and times of our lives.

May this Easter be a wonderful reminder of your faith in Jesus Christ. I pray that the busy-ness of this day will not cloud the true meaning of Easter! I pray that you can also say, because of his death and resurrection, ìIt is well with my soul.î

Mr President, May God guide you in all you do as you  continue protecting and prospering Americans and promoting liberty throughout the world. May you destroy terrorists and be completely aware of thier plans before they have a chance to carry out thier evil and may you be the victor for the sake of our children and our childrens children... Amen  Search Our Site            Bible Topic Search   QUICK LINKS TO OUR SITE OVERVIEW OF IFCA InternationalWhat We BelieveOur Mission and VisionLets Get AcquaintedLiberty in our FellowshipOur ConstitutionOur By-LawsHow to Become a MemberMembership FormsConvention ResolutionsMEMBERSHIP INFORMATIONMember Church WebsitesMember Church LocationsOur 2005 ConventionMember Email AddressesEmail password helpExecutive Director ItineraryOur Regional WebsitesTechnology Committee HelpCHAPLAINCIES WE ENDORSEMilitary ChaplaincyPrison ChaplaincyPolice & Fire ChaplaincyHospital Related ChaplainciesCorporate ChaplaincyPUBLICATIONS VOICE MagazineBulletin Service ArticlesChera Fellowship MagazineChurch & Minister's HandbookBenevolence Fund InformationBooks & Literature for SaleAudio & Video MinistriesHow God Transformed LivesDaily DevotionalsMINISTRIES Our Men's MinistryOur Youth MinistryOur Youth Quizzing MinistryOur Church Extension MinistriesOur Conciliation MinistryMissions Committee Q&AMissions& Ministries SupportedMINISTRY PLACEMENT Seeking Ministry PlacementChurch Seeking a PastorMINISTRY ENRICHING LINKSSermon Illustrations & HelpsInformation on IslamBible Study/Spiritual GrowthNews U Can UseOther useful resource linksChristian Higher EducationComputing ResourcesMusic & Worship ResourcesResponses to Gay MilitantsHow To's for Internet MinistryOnline News/MagazinesComputer Info SitesSearch EnginesTips & Traits for Leaders Prayers For Our President Fri, 19 Apr 2002 The e-mail below was written by Lindsey Yeskoo, the wife of Paul Yeskoo, a Christian Foreign Service Officer serving in Shanghai, and details her experience of meeting the President when he was in China a month or two ago. It underlines why we need to be faithful in praying for the President in particular and all our national leaders. Dear Family! It is a dull, polluted Monday morning here in Shanghai and we await news of President Bush's safe arrival back in Washington D.C. He just left here less than twelve hours ago. Everyone is breathing a sigh of relief that no terrorist incidents occurred here over the past days. Security was tight, as you will have seen on TV. On Friday afternoon, a crowd of 600 consulate/embassy staff + families were invited to a reception in the Atrium of the Shanghai/Portman complex, at 3:15pm, to meet both GW and Colin Powell. We waited a LONG time (due to all the security we had to go through), but our anticipation outweighed our tired bodies and sore feet. [We had left the house just after 10:30am in order to do all this!]. Finally, Bush was announced, and it was SO INCREDIBLE to see him walk in with Powell and take the podium before us, especially with all the recent events. Quite emotional for us all, actually. He gave a tremendous, candid yet heartening speech, and then was escorted down to the floor to meet the crowds. Everyone was of course behind a tight rope, and there were Secret Service men and security everywhere. There was no way he could meet all, but he sure did a great job of shaking hands with as many as possible. Colin Powell followed immediately behind him; he did not seem so engaging, surprisingly. Maybe the Secretary was (understandably) tired and distracted after his previous trips to Pakistan and India. Anyway, the three kids and I were in the very front row, and had an extraordinary experience with President Bush. Bush came along and shook Chris's hand first, noticing that he was all dressed up, and said, "You're looking sharp today, boy!" Chris was SO PROUD and SO PLEASED at the recognition (if only GW had known what a struggle I'd had to get him to wear a jacket and a tie!). Then he shook my hand and I told him how much we value his strong leadership at this time, that we are 100% behind him. He went on and took the girls' hands and talked to them. Then I leaned over and mentioned that we pray for him every day. He stopped dead in his tracks (a definite security NO-NO... the SS men got REALLY antsy). He searched my eyes as if to see how much I really meant what I was saying. Then he gave me the most amazing and unexpected personal response, Paul said for a good 20-30 seconds. He told me what the effect has been on him, waking up every day of the crisis and knowing within himself that he is being faithfully prayed for. He almost pleaded with me not to give up, but to persist with it, for this is only the beginning. Then he looked me even more squarely in my eyes, and gave me a very personal and specific series of instructions about the very things he most needs prayer for, on behalf of himself and of the nation. He urged me that the threat against America is very great, and that one of our focuses in prayer to God needs to be "the shielding of America"... and wisdom for him as he leads the country through this time. I don't know why, but as I looked straight back at him directly into his face, he let me see for those brief moments a tiny part of the agony he himself is going through, and the weariness. He finished the conversation by putting his hand on my right shoulder, almost as if it were the close of a commissioning, but affectionate too in a brotherly sort of way. People were pressing in at this point and almost knocking the four of us right into Bush. Many of them were the Chinese staff who work for Paul, who would not have understood ANY of that conversation; but others caught snippets and came afterwards to ask me WHAT we had been talking about. The President moved on. Needless to say, the whole experience was unforgettable. I cannot begin to tell you how deeply it has affected me. Certainly, I do not think I have ever prayed for a leader or government or nation (or world!) so extensively as I have done since then. It was really quite an unusual and unexpected and powerful encounter." What a blessing to have a professing Christian as President. Please take a moment after you read this to pray for him. He truly does have the weight of the world on his shoulders. Pray that God will sustain him and give him wisdom and discernment in his decisions. Pray for his protection and that of his family. After you have prayed, send this to everyone on your e-mail list. Our President needs Christians around the world to be praying for him. As this makes the e-mail rounds, eventually there could literally be people praying for him 24/7 . This was good, very good.

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