"Forgiven" by Thomas Blackshear II; "Here's the Church" by Kathryn Fincher; "In the Garden", Safely Home", and "The Clay" all by anointed artist Ron DiCianni
CALLING ALL CHRISTIAN CRAFTSMEN AND CRAFTSWOMEN!
Painting is only one area of creativity that the LORD is restoring to His church today. God is our Creator Who made us in His image and likeness, so we too, are creative! May nothing stop nor hinder the gifts and callings within each of us as we fulfill Jesus' command to "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel." (Mark 16:15) Here is a very cool link to check out: Art2See: A Second Renaissance

Elia; Jochum, Dorthea, Elia, Manfred; Roland, Sulamith, Nannie, Manfred
3 DAYS OLD AND 3 MONTHS OLD
Today at the Glimm home church, little 3 day old Elia and 3 month old Sulamith were dedicated to the LORD. Elia is the German name for Elijah and he surprised everyone by being born at home 30 minutes BEFORE the midwife arrived! Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you, anyone who doesn't have their kind of faith will never get into the Kingdom of God." Then he took the children into his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

WILLOW TREE BY THE SPREE
While walking along the Spree River here in Berlin yesterday, I came upon a big, beautiful weeping willow tree and was reminded of the promise as well as the warning of Psalm 1 written by David...
Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with scoffers. But they delight in doing everything the LORD wants; day and night they think about his law. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail. Their leaves never wither, and in all they do, they prosper. But this is not true of the wicked. They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. For the LORD watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.

IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH. Genesis 1:1
1 Chronicles 29:11
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.
Psalm 8:1
O LORD, our Lord, the majesty of your name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens.
Psalm 19:1
The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship.
Psalm 57:5 & 11; Psalm 108:5
Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens. May your glory shine over all the earth.
Psalm 97:6
The heavens declare his righteousness; every nation sees his glory.
Psalm 113:4
For the LORD is high above the nations; his glory is far greater than the heavens.
Corinthians 15:40
There are bodies in the heavens, and there are bodies on earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the beauty of the earthly bodies.
Matthew 24:30
And then at last, the sign of the coming of the Son of Man will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the nations of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man arrive on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

The Holy Place
Another wonderful evening worshipping the LORD at The Holy Place! And what's more, when we went to the streets to worship beforehand, 3 young teens accepted Jesus! Roland & Simon are going to meet with them next week in the plaza to have a Bible study - HALLELUJAH, DANKE JESUS!!!

Memorial Church; Can & Tabea sharing Jesus; Stephen, Michael, Can, Frank (he's reading a tract), Ernie (lots of pain - his 5 yr-old son died of Leukemia, his wife committed suicide, & he was in prison 7 yrs, now 38 & homeless), Tabea; one of the many homeless people who Jesus loves & died for
KUDAMM
Tonight Can, Tabea, & I met at the Kudamm Memorial Church again to worship & create an open heaven - the LORD heard our prayers as we had SEVERAL good conversations which included lots of prayer, lots of seeds planted, and at least one salvation! And unexpectantly, a Christian friend of Can happen to be there and joined us as we shared Jesus with Michael, Frank, Marie from France, John Peter and his 2 friends from Italy, Stephen, Monk, Rene, Otto, Ernie and others. One story: Not sure why Michael came over to us, but I saw that he was a bit drunk. Then the Holy Spirit prompted me to "get in his face" & tell him that he need to stop playing games with God, that God wasn't going to put up with his nonsense much longer and that he needed to repent. When I told him that God has a plan for him but he wasn't living it, he agreed and said a week ago someone else told him the exact same thing! He prayed right there with me to ask God to forgive him of his sins and ask Jesus into his heart. He told me that his father co-founded the YMCA in Berlin (a Christian organization) and what I said reminded him of his mother. Then Can and his friend talked & prayed with him more, took his phone number and invited him to church. GO GOD!! BLESS ALL THESE PEOPLE, LORD JESUS, AND PUT A BURNING HUNGER IN THEIR HEARTS TO WANT MORE OF YOU!

caligraphy by cathy
BE THANKFUL!
This is a VERY important key to living the victorious life as a disciple of Jesus and today I was reminded of this while reading through the New Testament. Once we were slaves of sin, but now we are obeying with all our heart the teaching God has given us - yes, the answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord, so let's thank God who gives us victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ our Lord! Yes, thanks be to God who made us his captives and leads us along in Christ's triumphal procession. Wherever we go he uses us to tell others about the Lord and to spread the Good News like a sweet perfume. Thank God for his Son--a gift too wonderful for words. We are to always give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and not worry about anything. Rather, we are to pray about everything, telling God what we need, and thank him for all he has done. May we always thank the Father, who has enabled us to share the inheritance that belongs to God's holy people who live in the light. Let our roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, so we will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth. May our lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done. And may the peace that comes from Christ rule in our hearts for as members of one body we are all called to live in peace. We should always be thankful while letting the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in our hearts and make us wise. We are to use his words to teach and counsel each other. We are to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever we do or say, it should be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father. We are to devote ourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. No matter what happens, we are to be always thankful, for this is God's will for us who belong to Christ Jesus. We are to pray for all people and as we make our requests, we are to plead for God's mercy upon them, and give thanks. And since we are receiving a Kingdom that cannot be destroyed, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually sing praises to the Lord. HALLELUJAH, THANK YOU, LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!!!

WHO WANTS JESUS?
"Ich!" ("Me!") "Ich auch!" (Me too!) and their hands shot up at the Teen Challenge cafe tonight. Anja asked if she could join me as she wanted to see this ministry to drug addicts and prostitutes who wander in off the streets, eating free snacks & drinking tea, visiting with the volenteers. Then a short talk about Jesus Christ is given and tonight, after the message I said a prayer, followed by, "Is there anyone here who wants to ask Jesus into their heart?" Both a man and a woman prayed to accept Jesus! Then we prayed for them & shared some basics about being a Christian. May the LORD protect them and guide them on their exciting new adventure with Him - DANKE JESUS!

TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD IS GOOD!
Did you eat today? Not only do we need physical food for our physical bodies each day but we also need spiritual food for our spiritual bodies each day to have a healthy life. Have you ever read Psalm 119? (click HERE to read it online) This is the longest chapter in the Bible and the focus of it is the importance of God's Word. Interestingly, Psalm 119 is an acrostic psalm which means each of the first eight verses begin with the first letter (aleph) of the Hebrew alphabet, each of the second eight verses begin with the second letter (bet) of the Hebrew alphabet and so forth, covering all 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. It is believed this Psalm was used to help young children learn their Hebrew ABC's as well as learn God's Truths. COOL! Jesus is also called the WORD in John 1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' " From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known. The word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are. Nothing in all creation can hide from God and everything is naked and exposed before his eyes. This is the God to whom we must explain all that we have done. Jesus is the Son of God and our great High Priest who has gone to heaven, so let us cling to Him and never stop trusting Him!

A REFUGE FROM THE STORM
I was TOTALLY blessed today when I read this portion of Isaiah's prophetic prayer in chapter 25, O LORD, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them. You turn mighty cities into heaps of ruins. Cities with strong walls are turned to rubble. Beautiful palaces in distant lands disappear and will never be rebuilt. Therefore, strong nations will declare your glory; ruthless nations will revere you. But to the poor, O LORD, you are a refuge from the storm. To the needy in distress, you are a shelter from the rain and the heat. For the oppressive acts of ruthless people are like a storm beating against a wall, or like the relentless heat of the desert. But you silence the roar of foreign nations. You cool the land with the shade of a cloud. So the boastful songs of ruthless people are stilled. In Jerusalem,the LORD Almighty will spread a wonderful feast for everyone around the world. It will be a delicious feast of good food, with clear, well-aged wine and choice beef. In that day he will remove the cloud of gloom, the shadow of death that hangs over the earth. He will swallow up death forever! The Sovereign LORD will wipe away all tears. He will remove forever all insults and mockery against his land and people. The LORD has spoken! In that day the people will proclaim, "This is our God. We trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!" This is all wonderful, but in our busy lives, let's also remember what the LORD says a few chapters earlier, But all your feverish plans are to no avail because you never ask God for help. Heavenly Father, thank You that you are our refuge from the storms of life. LORD, please forgive us for not asking You for help in all our plans. We need You more than we realize! Thank You, LORD Jesus, for setting us free through the Cross and thank You for the abundant life You give us. May we never forget Your promises and may we always be quick to repent when the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. Amen!

Kevin, Can, Tabea, Simon, Susan, & Judith
I WORSHIP YOU, O LORD!
Six-year-old Kevin came running up as soon as we arrived in the downtown area of Berlin-Spandau yesterday, very excited and happy to see his Kindergarten teacher, Can. Kevin sat with us for close to an hour playing the shaker, praising Jesus while others of us shared the good news of Jesus Christ. Seeds were planted and one man asked Jesus into his heart! As we talked to Kevin's mother, she told us that he adores Can, talking about him all the time. This little guy loves to pray and has been begging his parents to take him to church! Not knowing anything about Jesus nor the Bible, they finally bought him a children's Bible for his birthday & now they are all reading God's Word! This reminds me of when Jesus quoted Psalm 8 ("O LORD, our Lord, the majesty of your name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. You have taught children and nursing infants to give you praise.") to the religious leaders who became angry when they heard the little children in the Temple shouting to Jesus, "Praise God for the Son of David." YES, LORD!

ALL OF GOD'S PROMISES HAVE BEEN FULFILLED IN HIS SON!
This morning the LORD reminded me that I could trust Him TOTALLY because He is faithful to keep His promises! Several weeks after arriving in Berlin in 2002, I asked the LORD, "What am I doing here?" and later that day, while walking on the bridge over the Spree River near my flat, I saw a beautiful rainbow. The Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, "Just delight yourself in me and I will do the rest." Tears rolled down my face as I stood there, my eyes fixed on the beauty of God. I thought about how after the flood, the LORD told Noah, "I am giving you a sign as evidence of my eternal covenant with you and all living creatures. I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my permanent promise to you and to all the earth. When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will be seen in the clouds, and I will remember my covenant with you and with everything that lives. Never again will there be a flood that will destroy all life. When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth. Yes, this is the sign of my covenant with all the creatures of the earth." And today, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, never wavers between yes and no. He is the divine Yes--God's affirmation. For all of God's promises have been fulfilled in him. That is why we say "Amen" when we give glory to God through Christ. It is God who gives us the ability to stand firm for Christ - He has commissioned us and he has identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment of everything He will give us. Our heavenly Father already knows all our needs, and He will give us all we need from day to day if we live for Him and make the Kingdom of God our primary concern. AMEN!

WORSHIP EVANGELISM AT KUDAMM
Like me, both Tabea and Can love to worship God AND they love to tell people about their wonderful Savior, JESUS! So today we did both down at Kudamm. We prayed, we sang, we spoke, we listened, we rejoiced, we proclaimed, and we saw God touch hearts. During the 2 hours there, we talked with a couple of young guys (Thomas spoke great English) vacationing here from Lithuania, a fellow who goes to school here from Cameron, a few Arabic Moslem drug dealers from Lebanon, a homeless man, and some visiting students from Bavaria, to name a few. My friend Simone came and helped translate for me. Both Tabea and Can are looking forward to going back SOON! WILL YOU PLEASE SET THE BERLIN PEOPLE FREE, JESUS? THANK YOU, LORD!

Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution
And even though evil people and impostors will flourish, deceiving others and being deceived themselves, we must remain faithful to the things we have been taught in the holy Scriptures. The Word of God has given us the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. Yes, all Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right – it’s God's way of preparing us and fully equipping us for every good thing He wants us to do. I recently read some advice from an anointed servant of God. He said, “First read the Bible and then obey it. Then read it again!” GOOD ADVICE! God and Christ Jesus will someday judge the living and the dead when He appears to set up His Kingdom, so until then we are to preach the word of God. We are to be persistent, whether the time is favorable or not. We are to patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage others with good teaching. We should keep a clear mind in every situation and not be afraid of suffering for the Lord as we work at bringing others to Christ. I pray that we each complete the ministry God has given us. AMEN!

Worship evangelism with Can, Tabea, Simon, & Asia in Berlin-Spandau; Cathy, Asia, Tabea, & Can; Starbucks with Asia; Berlin FIRE Bear!
FUN WEEK WITH ASIA
Tomorrow Asia leaves for Poland to visit family & friends and it has been wonderful having her here. As missionaries with evangelistic giftings, we both love to talk to people about Jesus, so for me, it has been so much fun having her here! Yesterday, we again went to Kudamm with Tabea & Can to evangelise. Simon, Tabea's brother, also joined us. We spoke to several people including a few punks, most of whom have very painful pasts - many seeds were planted - but we all want to return, next time with guitars, drums, and Simon may bring his paint to do prophetic art as well - GO GOD! And last night, we had Bible study at Maria's - John 18 this week - and we also read through the list aloud of "Who I am in Christ" - very powerful as we proclaim the truth! (Click here to see list.) HALLELUJAH, JESUS LOVES BERLIN!

Pensacola Beach Sunset
GOD'S PROMISE
"How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ. Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on us because we belong to his dearly loved Son. He is so rich in kindness that he purchased our freedom through the blood of his Son, and our sins are forgiven. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. God's secret plan has now been revealed to us; it is a plan centered on Christ, designed long ago according to his good pleasure. And this is his plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ--everything in heaven and on earth." (Ephesians 1)

Full of WIND, full of COLOR, and full of FUN!
VISION
Today the LORD gave me a vision for a friend of a big sail, very colorful, very full of wind and blowing across the water having great fun! To me, this speaks to all who have ears to hear... the Wind is the Holy Spirit Who guides and directs us, the colors are the gifts and callings of God, and the fun is the joyful journey we have when we focus on Jesus, the Author of our faith and the Savior of our soul!

WHILE WALKING THROUGH THE PARK TODAY
Asia and I had a couple of divine appointments. The first was a girl who sat next to us while we fed the ducks/birds/swans bread crumbs. She was from Georgia and was Orthadox, so she knew about Jesus but wasn't sure what it meant to be born-again. We talked more with her and after giving her a tract, we prayed for her which must have blessed her, as she then gave me a big hug & said, "Thank you!" SAVE HER, LORD JESUS! And the second was with Adam, a man orginally from England who was walking his dog, a pretty Irish Setter. I first noticed him walk past us because of his dog. Then later, I happen to notice him again on the other side of the lake, so I prayed for him. Finally, there he was AGAIN sitting by the fountain in front of us! So I thought, "Ok - we need to talk to this guy!" So we went up to him - he was friendly and when we started to talk about Jesus, he said he grew up in a Christian home. However, he now wasn't sure about God and the many tatoos up and down his arms told of an intense past. I pointed to his arms and commented that it looked like he had been "down some roads" and then shared that I too had traveled some painful paths, telling a bit of my testimony. Without going into detail, he spoke some of his struggles which included loosing his children. We told him how the LORD wanted to renew His relationship with God, like the prodigal son, and that His heavenly Father was waiting for him, ready to run to him with open arms. The Holy Spirit was touching his heart and he said something like. "You don't realize how significant it was that you came and talked to me today." He let us pray for him & I gave him a tract about forgiveness. LORD JESUS, PLEASE SAVE ADAM AND MAY HE DISCOVER THE HEALING POWER OF YOUR LOVE THROUGH THE FATHER'S HEART!

Photo from Topography of Terros in Berlin
60 YEARS AGO
Today Germany is honoring those Germans who actively opposed Nazi tyranny. 60 years ago today the most famous plot to kill Adolf Hitler with a briefcase bomb was attempted by Col. Claus Graf Schenk von Stauffenberg & some of his officers. Stauffenberg placed the bomb in a conference room with Hitler, but when the Nazi leader escaped the blast, the aristocrat and his cohorts were arrested and executed. This plot is just one example of anti-Nazi resistance by Germans. Stauffenberg co-conspirators Maj. Gen. Henning von Tresckow and Maj. Gen. Hans Oster were already plotting as early as 1934 to bring Hitler down. In Munich, students formed The White Rose movement, distributing pamphlets urging "passive resistance" starting in 1942. Helmuth James von Moltke's Kreisau Circle started working in secret to end the dictatorship in 1940. Like Stauffenberg, von Tresckow, Oster, von Moltke and the principals of The White Rose were either executed by the Nazis or committed suicide. German President Horst Koehler hailed the July 20 plotters as "patriots" as "they did what they did for Germany, for the self-respect of our country and for a better future."