Sunday's Thought!

(C) Allen Pearson Photography

"Jesus said to her, 'I am the 

resurrection and the life; he

who believes in Me will live

even if he dies, and

everyone who lives and

believes in Me will never die.

Do you believe this?'"

- John 11:25-26

So what Are you going through these days? It seems 2020 has become the worst year in many people's memory. I'm not quite on board that thought because I try to find the positive in everything. Granted, sometimes I really have to look and think about it. However, I always find that God helps me to see the best along life's way.

Unfortunately, in the news and social media, I'm noticing more and more people criticizing the Christian faith often making it out to be the opposite of what it is. It's not some hateful group or organization which goes around doing horrible things to others. It's exactly the opposite. And, frankly, an organization of humans can have it's "bad" examples which make everyone think it's that way. Also, remember, humans are humans and any organization made up of humans is going to have problems because all humans aren't perfect and we make mistakes!

It seems that there are many who will make becoming a Christian a hard thing to do. Like going through some initiation or paying some money or doing some arduous tasks.  It's not. The Scripture I used today shares how easy it is to become a Christian. Believe! Confess your sins and believe!

To become a Christian, and accept Christ's awesome gift to us, the Gift of Salvation- eternal life, please read and pray through the following-

Admit
Admit that you are a sinner, just like everyone else born into this world, until we confess to Jesus Christ and ask His forgiveness:

"(23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (24) and are justified 

by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus," 

- Romans 3:23-24, ESV

"(23) For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

- Romans 6:23, ESV

Believe
Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ:

(16) “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, 

that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16, ESV 

Confess
Confess your sins in a prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ:

(9) "because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. "

- Romans 10:9, ESV

(13) "For 'everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'" 

- Romans 10:13, ESV

Pray

"Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner and do not deserve eternal life. 

I believe You died and rose from the grave to make me a new creation 

and to prepare me to dwell in your presence forever. 

Jesus, come into my life and take control, 

forgive my sins and save me. I place my trust in You alone

for my salvation and I accept your free gift of eternal life."

Amen

Now, you're a Christian - Welcome to the family. So, what's next-

• Find a 100% Bible-believing, teaching, preaching church. Here are a few resources:
• Southern Baptist Convention
• Southern Baptist Conservatives
• Church of the Nazarene

• Find believers (Christians) to fellowship

• Get baptized

• Buy a Bible

• Read the Book of John

• Get in a Bible Study

• Daily: Pray and read the Bible

• Read a Daily Devotional:
• Billy Graham Daily Devotional
• In Touch Devotions by Dr. Charles Stanley
• Dr. David Jeremiah
• PowerPoint Ministries by Jack Graham

• Find a Mentor

• Learn how to Pray

• If you find yourself asking "Why am I not perfect" or "Why am I still doing wrong things?" Be sure to talk with your Pastor, a Christian friend or a mentor.

To learn more, please visit Peace With God.

Nature Photography! Toad Finds a Home!

"Frog Finds a Home!"
(C) Allen Pearson Photography

Amidst the development in Bristow, VA, a toad discovered it needed a place to stay for a while.  While the toad searched the area, it found little comfort in the sites found among the mini-to-huge mansions built in the Prince William County, Virginia.

As the frog searched and searched, it came upon a garden area in the Ballagan House property.  Toad didn't know what to expect here but he continued to hop-along across and around the property. He was surprised to find a place where he could stay amidst suburban development. This will do "fine!" he says.

An exciting aspect of creating a wildlife garden in my backyard is watching nature unfold in front of my eyes. I have seen birds feeding their young, birds making nests, birds teaching their young to fly, snakes looking for their next meal and a few snake babies (that was almost heartstopping- literally), and, of course, the absolute beauty of native flowers, trees, and other plants.

I enjoy photographing gardens and nature. Please visit my work at Allen Pearson Photography!

Wednesday's Words! Encouragement from God's Word!

(C)  2020, Allen Pearson Photography

"Call to Me and I will

answer you,

and I will tell you great

and mighty things,

which you do not know."

- Jeremiah 33:3

Sunday's Thought!

"Two Analog Weighing Scales"
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

Are You Fearful God Won’t Accept You?

By Adrian Rogers, Love Worth Finding Ministries

"… whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus…" Romans 3:25-26

When I was a little boy, I thought God was like Santa Claus with a long beard sitting up in heaven—making a list and checking it twice, trying to find out if I was naughty or nice. Then when my life was over, I would face Him and He would pull out these massive scales and weigh my good works against my bad to see if I made it into heaven.

Do you know what thinking this did to me? It made me fearful that at the end of my life I would face God and He would say, “Adrian. I’m sorry, but according to My calculations, you didn’t make it.” Then I would have to turn and ashamedly walk past my family and friends, separated from them and from God forever.

Friend, maybe you too believe this. But let me set the record straight: Salvation is not an attainment, it is an atonement—it is the reconciliation of man with God through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. You cannot achieve it—you must receive it.

You cannot atone for your sins. Your good works cannot do it. None of us could produce works good enough or fast enough to atone for sin. Don’t even try. Rest in the finished work of the Cross.

For more from Love Worth Finding and Pastor Adrian Rogers and to learn about salvation, please visit Love Worth Finding - Assurance of Salvation.

For more from Love Worth Finding and Pastor Adrian Rogers, please visit www.lwf.org.

Devotion used by written permission of Love Worth Finding.

Railroad Photography! Freight and Grain Cars, Art of the Freight Car, Rail Art Series!

"Freight and Grain Cars, Art of the Freight Car, Rail Art Series!" is my first attempt at creating a black and white photograph of a freight train.  The image was created along the Norfolk Southern's B-Line near Belvior, VA, not far from Marshall, VA.

My photography work is available on traditional archival paper, canvas, metal prints, and note cards in two styles. To learn about products and pricing, please visit the "Products, Prices, and Services" page of this website. To view my other photography work, please visit Allen Pearson Photography. 

If you are interested in other products with my photography images, please visit my CafePress store at CafePress.com/AllenPearsonPhotography. Should you not find the product you would like, please inquire at allenpearsonphotography@gmail.com. While I cannot guarantee every product is available, I will check for you!

Wednesday's Words! Encouragement from God's Word!

(C) Allen Pearson Photography

"Jesus Never Fails!"

- Anonymous

Sunday's Thought!

"My Uncle's Gravesite"
(C) 2020, Kim Kirby, All Rights Reserved

When We Hurt

by Kim Kirby

When we hurt, 

Christ is our hope, 

and He will bring us healing.

by Kim Kirby, 2020

To learn about God's Plan of Salvation for man, please visit www.peacewithgod.net

Garden Photography! Garden Perspectives! Dahlia Fuchsia Splashes!

"Garden Perspectives! Dahlia Fuchsia Splashes!"
(C) Allen Pearson Photography

Dahlia's are a featured flower in my macro photography work. What I like about these flowers is the seemingly brushed look many of the flowers have. To me, it looks like God took His Paint Brushes out and painted the fuchsia colors on a white bloom.

Please visit my photography work at Allen Pearson Photography! 

Wednesday's Words! Encouragement from God's Word!

(C) Allen Pearson Photography

"Set your minds on

things that are above,

not on things that

are on earth."

- Colossians 3:2

Sunday's Thought!

"Table Mountain Ecological Reserve, Oroville, Ca, USA"
Photo by Deanna Lewis on Unsplash

Is Hell for Real?

Jack Graham, PowerPoint Ministries

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. 

Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

--Matthew 10:28

As I look at the church today, I'm astonished at the level to which I've seen so many forget about the full truth of the Gospel. You see, Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin and save us so we can go to heaven. Yet many men and women in our church today have chosen to ignore the fact that Jesus saved them from something... hell.

People don’t like to talk about hell. They don’t want to offend people with the idea that every single one of us is lost without Christ – condemned and targeted for judgment in hell. They especially don’t want to think about good and decent people who have rejected Christ spending an eternity apart from Him in hell.

But I’d like to remind you that Jesus loves people like no other person could love people. He loves lost humanity more than all of the world put together! Our love and compassion can’t even compare with the love of God in Christ Jesus. But the Christ who came to the cross in compassion and mercy to all who believe spoke and warned of hell many times.

Whether you recognize it or not, hell is real. It’s a real place where real people spend a real eternity apart from God. So instead of ignoring hell, remember that your life should be lived to tell others there’s a way to escape it through a faith relationship with Jesus Christ!

THE BIBLE IS CLEAR THAT HELL IS REAL. SO LIVE YOUR LIFE TO TELL OTHERS HOW TO ESCAPE IT THROUGH A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS!

To learn more about God's Plan for your life, please visit PowerPoint Ministries with Jack Graham, New Life in Christ.

Devotion used by written permission of PowerPoint Ministries with Jack Graham.

Wednesday's Words! Encouragement from God's Word!

(C) Allen Pearson Photography

"Keep your life free from

love of money, and be

content with what you have, for he has said, 

'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'"

- Hebrews 13:5

Sunday's Thought!

"A Church in the Country"
(C) 2020, Allen Pearson Photography

Sunday's have always been the day to go to church. It started with my family before I was even born. As a matter of fact, since my father was a Minister of Music and my mother the Church Organist while she was pregnant with me, I like to say I was singing the hymns of the church while waiting to be born. My father being into music sang and played a lot of it around the house too, including playing classical music on albums, cassettes or CDs.

We always had to get ready for church on Sunday morning and head over to the church. I do not remember giving my parents a rough time about going to church though anything could be possible since I was an adventurous young boy. So we went. We went to Sunday School, Worship Service, and during the week, we would go to Wednesday night Youth Group. When the church held revival services, with meetings every night of the week, we were at those too.

Every summer my father would take my brother and me to the church camp meeting. There, we would hear great song evangelists and preachers of the church who would come from all over the country for the week. I loved it because the music and preaching were usually among the best in the church's denomination. Also, it was usually the time when I would see friends who attended church within the state.

There was something about attending church, Wednesday nights, revivals, camp meetings, and other church events that I am possibly forgetting, that was very special. I didn't quite understand it as a young child and probably didn't pay attention as a teenager but it was a unique feeling or like a love which you didn't find anywhere else. I can remember many times, maybe even as often as my Dad took me to church or camp meeting, finding wishing I could stay there forever- because it was like a taste of heaven or what we humans would think heaven will be like.

I remember becoming a Christian at a very early age, like around 6. However, after a few people said a few things about it being a Christian at that age, I rededicated my life to Christ in college. I wanted to be sure I met Jesus in Heaven when I died. No ifs, ands, or buts because I knew that's what God would say on that day of me.

Over the 57 years of my life, I can look back often and see how God has taken care of me in many situations. I wish I could say that my life has been perfect with me making no mistakes, experiencing no tragic or sad events or challenging times, and with me being wealthy.  If I said that, it would be far from the truth. However, I find myself happy and content within my heart and soul which is something only God provides. That is the feeling I found and remember experiencing from camp meetings and church events. He gives it when you ask for it!

How do you find peace, contentment, and happiness for yourself? Visit Peace With God to learn more.