Hello!

I hope you are well, today.

Good news!  Google Groups, the biggest, free, web-based archive of newsgroup messages, has started carrying the free.christians newsgroup!  This is a fantastic blessing because now the entire world can read and post messages to our newsgroup without having any special software, newsreaders, or news accounts.  You can visit and post by clicking here: http://go.freechristians.org.

Have you heard our audio devotions?  In the past, I had been a little inconsistent with recording and posting the audio devotions.  Now, I'm pledging to get them online on Sunday nights, so they are available when the text devotions reach you.  I apologize for not being more consistent in the past.  Please pray that I can fulfill this commitment.

If you are unfamiliar with our audio devotional ministry, I record a devotional that correlates to the written devotional message and I upload it to the web.  It's less than 10 minutes long and free from our web site.  You can see (and hear) our archive here: http://ada.jcsm.org.

I've completed my last post in my 10 round debate with Farrell Till.  After several months and plenty of research, I'm glad it's finally over.  With all due respect to Farrell, it wasn't a difficult debate to win; partly because the way he formed the resolution.  I had planned to create a web site with my research, but now, I'm feeling that the answer to the resolution is so easy and obvious that a web page devoted to it may not be necessary.

Please pray for the people who read the debate.  It has already been seen over 4,000 times.  You can see it here: http://www.iidb.org/vbb/forumdisplay.php?s=7da8102c2926dd9a86202e67621a46bf&forumid=17.

Thanks to those that prayed for Ray.  He is still in prison and has another court date on December 4th.  He responded to my letter with a nice letter and I'm happy to continue encouraging him to follow and trust Christ.

Are you getting errors on your PC?  Has your computer started getting slower?  Try PCBugDoctor!  I used this program to find hundreds of errors on my computer and it fixed them nicely.  You can see more about it here: http://PCBugDoctor.com.

Thanks for praying with me for JCSM to have even more visitors.  Last week was another record week!  Glory to God.

I pray that God blesses you richly.  Seek Him and He will lift you up.

This is your ministry, so please feel free to link to JCSM and forward these devotions to your friends and family. On JCSM, there are over 50,000 web pages of pictures, forums, midis, Bible lessons, humor, proverbial stories, links, devotions, poetry, prayer journals, and much more!

JCSM has encouraging sermons, exciting debates, and the Bible on MP3 online and you can freely stream and download them!  Come and listen at http://sa.jcsm.org.

If you consider yourself either a theological scholar, a seeker, or a student of the Word, then you'll enjoy the Inerrancy Discussion Board.  It's the #1 place for discussing the inerrancy of God's Word!  Come and see: http://www.inerrancy.com (the Inerrancy Discussion Board is sponsored and administrated by JCSM).

Would you like to support God’s work on the web? If this ministry has touched you in a special way, please pray and consider sending a gift to JCSM. You can join us in our vision to reach people on the web with the good news! Either email me for more information or simply go here: http://vision.jcsm.org.

Visit the JCSM Study Center!  We have over 550mb of resources like English and foreign Bibles, maps, ancient literature, commentaries, Greek and Hebrew dictionaries, and concordances and much more!  Plus, it's all free.  Link: http://study.jcsm.org.

Welcome to the new readers of this message! Here is your Devotion, A Moment of Introspection, JCSM's Challenge, the Word of the Week, a faith-builder from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained," and the Quotes of the Week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!

Love in Christ,

Jason Gastrich

ICQ#: 20731140, AIM: MrJasonGastrich, YIM: Jesus_Saved_Jason

The Weekly Devotion (click here to listen!)

"Disobeying God Equals Suffering"

Proverb 3:11, 12  "My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor detest His correction; for whom the LORD loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights."

Hebrews 12:11  "Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."

Titus 1:16  "They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work."

Titus 3:3-7  "For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life."

Insight: Disobedience to God causes people problems.  Titus 1:16 affirms that disobedient people are unqualified for every good work.  Disobeying God is sinning and doing something foolish.  People are generally punished for their sinful behaviors.  Plus, they are wasting time that they could be investing in something profitable (e.g. doing right).

Prayer: "Thank you for having patience with us, Lord.  Thank you for loving us more than we understand.  Bless us and help us obey You.  Thank you for knowing best.  Remind us that You are perfect and your Word is without error.  Forgive us for falling short and sinning.  Help us to be fully devoted to You.  Equip us and prepare us for good works.  Help us to learn from our mistakes and walk in the light.  Thank you for having patience with us.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

America's Foundation

Queen Isabella (1451-1504), was the Queen of Castile, who, along with her husband, King Ferdinand of Aragon, financed Christopher Columbus' expedition to the Indies, which resulted in the discovery of America.  In her commission to Columbus, she recited that the purpose of the voyage was:

A Moment of Introspection

Which "promised land" of blessings are you too fearful to enter?

Ask God to encourage you, today.

God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

phone (pronounced fo-nay, Greek): a tone, an address, saying or language, noise, sound, voice

The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible" claims:

Genesis 6:6-7 - God "repented ... that he had made man." But elsewhere the Bible tells us that God does not repent.

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" responds:

This Hebrew word also means "to be sorry."  God did not repent from a sin.  God saw their huge and continual sin and was upset.  In that moment, He was sorry that He had made these people who wanted nothing to do with Him.

(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Jason Gastrich.  This book is on CD and explains over 3,000 difficulties regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org.)

Don't forget the amazing things God has done in your life.

Which "promised land" of blessings are you too fearful to enter?

Baby faith is shown where everything is lined up perfectly for you and it takes very little faith to make something happen.

Huge faith is revealed when you do something God tells you to do, but you will fail without His intervention.

People with big faith remember their victories in Christ and how He has moved in the past.

When God calls you to do something you don't understand, remember what He has done in the past.

David remembered his victories over a lion and a bear, then he slew Goliath.

Believe that the things God tells you can happen.

Big faith expects God to do big things.

Ask God to encourage you, today.

When you ask God to move in your life, watch and see what He does.

There will be a cost for having faith, trusting, and obeying God.

It is fun and exciting to let and see God work in your life.

Pray and ask God to change you and bless you with great faith.

These quotes came from God, me, and Miles McPhearson.

Do you need more quotes?  We have thousands in our archives!  They are located here: http://quotes.jcsm.org.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun. Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles. Some of the quotes are humorous or rhetorical, others are written from sermons and Bible studies, and some are lyrics from songs. If you’d like me to go into more detail on any of them, please email me.

Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated. To use what I’ve written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way! Please don’t sell my quotes or publish them for profit. If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes. I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings. God bless you all!

Please make a commitment to pray for this ministry. As every believer is tempted and tried, this ministry faces trials also. God has blessed me, JCSM and the people who have been reached! Unfortunately, the enemy knows this and spiritual warfare is the result. Please at least pray that the devotions continue to be written religiously, the web pages stay on the www and the readers are blessed, sanctified and protected from evil. Thank you very much in advance!

Do you want to help people receive the good news?  We’re reaching new people every day with God’s awesome Word! If God has blessed you and you wish to send a love offering to JCSM, please send your gift to the address below.

You can join our vision and help this ministry! Your donations will keep these ministries running and further our visions for evangelism. Hundreds of web pages have been created to lead people to the Lord. Frequently, we make new ones and they are used to bring more and more people into a closer relationship with Jesus Christ. We’re certain there will be more ways to reach people in the future.

JCSM is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization.  If you wish to contact us in the mail or send support, please make checks payable to Jesus Christ Saves Ministries.  Here is our mailing address:

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

3219 Clairemont Mesa Blvd. #212

San Diego, CA 92117

Along with getting support, we also give support! JCSM regularly gives to churches, Christian ministries and needy people. Another function of this ministry is to do counseling. We are always answering questions about life, the Lord and everything in between. Lastly, we do a lot of research on religious topics on the internet and library. You will definitely see the results of our hard work and your loving support, in the web pages, and in the weekly devotions!

Fishes and Loaves (FALO) is a great, missions organization.  They have helped many people embark on missions trips to the uttermost parts of the world.  If you are interested in missions, please visit http://www.gofalo.net.

Do you need to find a solid, Christian church?  I've attended numerous, Calvary Chapel churches and I've been very blessed by their Bible-based sermons, inspiring worship, and kind members.  If you don't have a home church, if you're traveling, or if you need to find a new church, I recommend visiting the following site and locating a Calvary Chapel near you: http://www.calvarychapel.org.

OCCM (Online Christ-Centered Ministries) has certified JCSM as a ministry that preaches the true, biblical gospel of Jesus Christ.  OCCM is a professional membership association for Christian ministries and people that reside on and off the internet.  Are you OCCM certified?  For more information, go here: http://www.occm.org.

Would you prayerfully consider supporting JCSM with $5 per month?  If God leads you to take this step of faith and bless this ministry, PayPal will process a donation subscription for you.  It will only take a minute and you can join us in this dynamic ministry that constantly reaches people all over the world.  Here is the link for $5 donations: http://5.jcsm.org.

Over 50,000 web pages!

Jesus loves you!

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."