Category Archives: Featured

Chemotherapy Burned Away Self-Hatred

Eve Ensler

Eve Ensler was physically and sexually abused by her father while growing up. This drove her to become an activist and playwright. She gained a very controversial yet monumental role in women’s rights.

She has spent most of her life talking, listening, traveling the world, helping women. Ensler met women who were raped in Bosnia, cut in Kenya, destroyed in Afghanistan. She used the very thing that had broken her to encourage women. She urged them not to become bound by the awful things that happened.

While she is a controversial activist and playwright Ensler carries another title proudly: cancer survivor. Eve was diagnosed with uterine cancer. Three days later she had a nine-hour operation. She lost many organs and nodes. It was a life changing event.

It was through her illness that she began to experience true healing. According to an interview she had on the Today Show, “For years I carried around such darkness, such sorrow, such self-hatred. When I would sit with the port and five hours of chemotherapy juice would go into my body I would visualize it burning away.”

Ensler challenged women to respect their bodies no matter what society says. She struggled with the same insecurities as the women she encountered all over the world. She disassociated herself from her violated body. She felt ashamed of what had happened to her.

She also believed the lies of western society that define beauty and determines what a woman is expected to look like. Who would have thought that her diagnosis of cancer would become the wake up she needed all along?

Armed with this new self-awareness and love for her life she has been able to more effectively communicate with women. Eve has been able to help women overcome obstacles.

These women learn how to begin rebuilding their life. This is a broken world filled with broken people who hope for wholeness.

There is hope. Jesus Christ, God’s Son, came to give each of us the opportunity to begin again. He took the pain of our failures on His shoulders. He bore the pain of our brokenness on His back. He is willing to give you new life and new hope.

It begins with a simple prayer: “Dear Jesus, I am sorry for the wrong things I have done. I am broken and need healing. I am tired of the pain life dealt me. Please give me new life as I declare You to be Lord and Savior of my life. In Jesus’ name, amen!”

If you prayed that prayer, click the button below and someone will contact you to help you take the next step toward wholeness.

-Catherine Anderson

 

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Olympic Wild Card Rower Wins Crowd Not Medal

Wild Card Rower

Hamadou issakThree months ago, Hamadou Issaka was a gardener in Niger. This past weekend, he was an Olympic competitor. Chosen through a wild card lottery for the 2012 London Olympic games, this swimmer turned wild card rower has now been named the “Sculling Sloth.”

His performance was not record-breaking, but in a grand Olympic tradition, his spirit as a competitor won the crowd that cheered wildly as Issaka crossed the finish line more than 1 minute 30 seconds after the first place winner. Not everyone can be an Olympic athlete. The idea that an ordinary man from Niger would find himself in the Olympic games has not pleased everyone. But, for many people Issaka is symbolic of the ordinary guy who goes through life without too much notice.

Perhaps that’s why the spectators found themselves cheering for a man who had never set foot in a boat 90 days ago but who through a long series of events represented Niger in the Olympic games. Most people fear being ordinary. We tend to celebrate the brightest, the most beautiful, the super athletes. Most of us will never be described that way by anyone.

Sometimes that can make a people doubt their worth. They can feel insignificant. Invisible. Ordinary.

It may seem like that, but God does not view any person as ordinary or insignificant. In fact, you are anything but ordinary! You are made in God’s image.

Perhaps you may never be an Olympic athlete. You might escape the notice of some people around you, but you will always be seen by God. He sees you having worth. He sees you trying hard to make a good life. He sees you as deserving of a special gift.

God loves you so much that He sent His one and only Son into the world to ensure that you could have life, abundant life! He sees your worth. He also sees your need. Each of us have failed at one time or another. Those failings can come between God and us. The Bible calls it: “Sin.” Jesus came to forgive our sins and offer us an opportunity to move beyond problems and experience true forgiveness.

Just a few short days ago, hardly anyone had heard of Hamadou Issaka of Niger. Today, he is an Olympic athlete. That’s quite a change, but nothing compared to the simple truth that when a person comes to Christ and asks for new life, they are granted forgiveness for today and life for all of eternity.

If you want the chance to move out of ordinary living. If you want the opportunity to make a new beginning, ask Jesus to become Lord of your life. It is as simple as a prayer: “Dear Jesus, I am sorry for the wrong things I have done. Sometimes I feel so insignificant
. I ask You to forgive me and give me new life. I promise to follow after you from this day onward. In Jesus’ name. Amen!”

If you prayed that prayer, simply click the button below this article and someone will contact you soon to help you take the next step forward.

 

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Olympic Traditions: Completing the Race

Olympic runnerEvery four years, an amazing event takes place on the world stage; it is called the Summer Olympics. The best athletes from around the world gather to compete at a level most of us will never aspire to attain.  The games are coming up at the end of the month in London and promise to be quite exciting.

But, this year’s athletes have a lot to live up to. The Olympic tradition is filled with amazing stories that when taken together reveal the insanity of our world and the possibility of changing it, one person at a time.

So many Olympic stories are incredible.  Whether you think back to the events that inspired the movie “Chariots of Fire” from the 1924 Olympics, (that’s the story of Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams, two British runners helped each other and at the same time brought glory to England) or Jesse Owens the black runner who competed for America in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin defeating Hitler’s Aryan athletes, the stories that unfold at the Olympics are far more important than mere sporting events.

Do you remember the tragedy of the Munich Olympics in 1972 when members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage and eventually killed by the Islamic Militant group, Black September?  They sought to capture the world stage and only drew attention to the cancerous nature of their own ideology.

Time and again, individual stories of triumph arise out of the Olympic back stories that seem to help us correct our own focus.

The Olympic stories are larger than life because so often, athletes have been able to bring our world together when it seems so likely that we will be torn apart by humanity’s discontent.

The Olympics have provided us with so many storylines, so many individual athletes competing not so much against each another, but against themselves.

Perhaps the greatest Olympic story relates to a relatively unknown marathon runner from the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City.  Tanzania’s John Stephen Akhwari was competing in the Marathon, but the thin air had already caused 17 of the 75 runners to drop out of the race. It was a grueling event and one not repeated in any Olympics since.

Although AkHwari had fallen and dislocated his knee early in the competition, he pressed on. His knee was heavily bandaged. The pain was nearly unbearable. Still Awhwari ran.

 More than an hour after the race had been decided, a severely wounded Akhwari entered the Estadio Olimpico Universitario to the slight applause from a few remaining spectators.

At the time, it did not seem like history in the making.

But to those who would later watch the moment unfold on tape—and later in one of Bud Greenspan’s acclaimed Olympic documentaries—it became the seminal moment of athletic perseverance.

Asked afterwards by Greenspan why he had continued in the face of such obvious defeat, Akhwari famously replied: “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; they sent me 5,000 miles to finish it.

While Akhwari’s knee gave way, his character didn’t.  He chose to  because it represented who he was and who his nation was in sending him.

The 2012 Olympics are a blank slate tonight. The torch hasn’t been lit. The athletes haven’t yet held a single completion under the Olympic banner, but many of them have already determined whether they will win or lose simply by how they have trained themselves to stay in the race.

If you are facing hopelessness in your life, you may feel like giving up. You might feel like the loss you feel now is forever. It isn’t!  You have reason to push on and stay in the race.

Why? You were created by a loving God who desires to give you life, abundant life. He knows the disappointment you feel. He understands the pain of loss. He did something about it.  He sent His one and only Son to live among us, to race along side us.  Jesus Christ understands your pain because he is one of us. He died and rose again so that the pain you feel right now doesn’t need to last forever.

The peace you need to carry on is just one prayer away. Simply let God know that you’ve made mistakes. Let Him know that you are sorry and then ask Him to give you new life through Jesus Christ.  When you do, you’ll discover the strength you need to run your race to the finish line. Best of all, you’ll know that Jesus is right there with you, running every step of the way to help you succeed.

- Bill Hennessy

 

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Olympics Shame and Restoration

Jim ThorpeWith the London Olympics right around the corner, talk surrounding the games is just beginning to ramp up. That generally means people talk about past Olympic greats like Jesse Owens, Aleksandr Karelin or Mark Spitz.  But there is another list of athletes whose names appear time after time in Olympic discussions, they are the disgraced athletes who ended their careers not on the winners’ platform, but in shame.

Everyone experiences shame at one time or another. Sometimes it is merited. Sometimes, it is not. Jim Thorpe was stripped of his 1912 Olympic medals only to have the International Olympic Committee restore them 30 years after his death. His story paints a graphic picture of the loss of shame and the joy of restoration even if it comes late.

Shame is a ruthless predator that stalks us without mercy. It hurts most when we feel shamed by those we love.  Sometimes shame comes from a spouse. Sometimes it comes from a family member. It may come from the work place or even society as in the case of disgraced athletes losing an Olympic medal.

One thing is certain, if you are experiencing shame in your life, you long for a way out. You probably hope for someone to come along and love you again as though the problem that caused your shame never happened.

There is real a solution to shame. Jesus Christ offers anyone who comes to Him and asks the opportunity to find forgiveness and overcome shame.  He took your shame on His shoulders when men nailed Him to the Cross. He offers you a new beginning and the promise of new life.

Shame destroys.  It destroys our hope. It destroys our futures.  It destroys our trust.

Jesus can restore each of these things when we ask Him for His forgiveness and a new beginning. If you need a way past shame, if you need a new beginning, you can ask Jesus to forgive you for the wrong things you have done and start fresh. Sound good? Simply click the button below that says “Yes, I prayed the Prayer” and someone will contact you soon.

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American Idols: Revealing Our Search for Significance

january 2012 insignificance

American Idol, the wildly popular TV talent contest, will begin its 11th season tonight on Fox. The two hour debut will probably feature a number of people who obviously aren’t cut out for public performance. It will provide many laughs as they contend that they are sure to be the next American Idol only to be panned by the judges.

Why would people subject themselves to nationwide humiliation?  I think it is because the one thing they fear more than the laughter and criticism they will experience is better than feeling insignificant. It is a way of getting attention.

Many people battle loneliness. They feel withdrawn and struggle to find something worth living for. Trying out for American Idol may just be a cry for attention. Unfortunately, many of us do not grasp the reality that we are ordinary human beings. We can sing fine a crowd, but we’re not soloists. We do well at the things that we do, but we weren’t meant to stand out on a national stage.

When a person feels shy or ignored, he or she can become withdrawn and begin looking for acceptance in all the wrong places. I believe that’s why so many good people become entangled in bad relationships. They want a life of purpose, but can’t seem to find what will bring them joy and fulfillment. Sound familiar?

Jesus Christ came to earth to provide each of us a sense of purpose. He knows that we are not all lead singers. He knows that we may not be able to dance perfectly or walk the runway at a Paris fashion show. Still, He sees our worth. He understands that we are all created in God’s image and have incredible potential. He was also willing to do something about it!

Jesus took the price of our failings on His own shoulders. He paid that price on the cross of Calvary and now, He offers each of us the promise of new life in Him. All we need to do is accept His offer. It all begins with a prayer: “Dear Jesus, I need Your help. I need Your purpose in my life. I am sorry for the wrong things I have done. I want to live for you. Please be Lord and Savior of my life. In Jesus’ name, amen!”

If you prayed that prayer, please click the button below and someone will contact you soon so you can find your purpose in life.

- Bill Hennessy

 

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Your Life has Significance

insignificanceAll of us go through hard times and sometimes we may feel invisible, unimportant, unappreciated. We can struggle with the purpose of life.  When life doesn’t go as we hoped, we’re tempted to believe that we cannot contribute to our family, our workplace and our society. What difference does one person’s life make anyway?  Can anyone battle this war with insignificance?

Well, recently the Iowa Caucus showed just how significant one person can really be.  The front, runner (Mitt Romney) and second place candidate (Rick Santorum) were separated by just 8 votes after 100,000 caucus votes were counted.  Eight votes signaled who won and who lost in Iowa. Amazingly, sometimes decisions are much closer even than that!

In 1997 – Vermont State representative Sydney Nixon was seated as an apparent one vote winner, 570 to 569.   Mr. Nixon resigned when the State House determined, after a recount, that he had actually lost to his opponent Robert Emond 572 to 571.

In fact, one United States presidential election was determined by a single vote.  In 1800, Thomas Jefferson was elected President by one vote in the House of Representatives after a tie in the Electoral College. One person’s voice can make a real difference.

Because of our loneliness, we may be tempted to ignore our own worth, our own significance, but our feelings do not make us right or wrong. You may struggle with self worth, but you have tremendous worth in the eyes of your Creator. So much so that He sent His one and only son into our world to provide a way for you to have relationship with Him.

It was a costly decision. Because all human-beings have failings, because we have all done wrong things in our lives, Jesus Christ had to settle a sin debt he did not owe in order for us to be friends with God.  He paid that price on the cross when he died for your sins and mine.  Three days later he rose from the dead and sealed the deal forever. We can be friends of God!

You may wonder if your life has value. You may struggle with how you feel about yourself, but make no mistake, God values you.  He gave His most precious gift to you when He offered you salvation through Jesus Christ. Now the decision is yours.  Will you choose Jesus?

If you are ready to find your worth in God’s love for you, why not pray this prayer?  “Dear Jesus, I am sorry for the wrong things I have done. Please forgive me for all those things. I ask You to become Lord and Savior of my life. Help me to find my worth in You. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

If you prayed that prayer today, please click the “yes” button below and someone will contact you soon. Jesus Loves You!

-Bill Hennessy

 

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Chelsea Clinton Emphasizes Community

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For most of her life, Chelsea Clinton shied from the spotlight that shone on her parents, Former US President Bill Clinton and his wife US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  She spent eight years in the White House, but largely off camera.  “For most of my life, I did deliberately lead a private life and inadvertently led a public life,” Chelsea explained on NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams.

Many people shy from attention, but often their anonymity also means they cannot be as effective in life.  God’s design for people is that we would influence each others’ lives.  Each of us has something to offer someone else. For Chelsea Clinton, that meant losing the opportunity her name recognition offered her.  She chose to change that as a result of a conversation with her grandmother.

“My grandmother, who passed away at the beginning of November, had a core adage in her life that ‘life is not about what happens to you but about what you do with what happens to you.’ She recently had been cajoling me and challenging me to do more with my life,” she told Williams. As a result, she took a job with the National Broadcasting Corporation to do stories on community involvement.

For Christians, investing in each other’s lives is not option. The Bible repeatedly challenges us to find fellowship and stay in fellowship. One way to do that is to join an online Christian social network. GlobalFriendLink.com is a great place to begin. There you can meet believers from around the world and share life together.

As Chelsea Clinton pointed out, it is important to influence each other’s lives.  What does that mean to a believer?  It can be the opportunity to share encouragement, pray together, find inspiration, share stories or a number of other things all in a safe environment. GlobalFriendLink.com is just such a place on line. Why not check it out today?

- Bill Hennessy
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Miley Cyrus Birthday Comments a Search for Significance?

miley cyrusFormer Disney star, Miley Cyrus is getting a lot of attention these days, but not all attention is good. Psychiatrist Carole Lieberman, the author of “Bad Girls: Why Men Love Them & How Good Girls Can Learn Their Secrets,” counts herself as one who thinks Cyrus is playing with fire…“She is on a slippery slope and no one seems to be paying attention except the media. Not her parents, nor her managers, nor anyone else. In fact, these dalliances with drugs seem to be Miley’s sad way of getting attention.”

Can someone be a star and feel insignificant?  Yes, anyone can feel lonely, shy or withdrawn. The stage persona many put on while in public does not mean that they have found something worth living for.  Miley Cyrus appears to be crying out for help, but her cries seem to be falling on deaf ears. If she cannot find a sense of purpose, it is likely that she will continue to self-destruct.

Many people can feel insignificant and cry out for attention.  In a day when so many people find fame and fortune, others are left disenfranchised, and looking for acceptance.  Feelings of insignificance can destroy us too. Unless we live in the spotlight, few will notice, but the battle for significance has caused many people to do foolish things in order to find acceptance.

How can you live life with purpose? How can you find significance?  It begins by acknowledging that you not an accident that happened. Your life was designed by God. He created you to be valued and fulfilled. If you do not feel those things today, it is possible that you need a relationship with Jesus Christ. He can give you a life with meaning.

It all begins with a prayer: “Dear Jesus, I am sorry for the things I have done wrong. I know I was created for a purpose, but I feel so insignificant today. I want love and friendship, but I just keep making mistakes. Please accept me as Your own and I will make you Lord and Savior of my life. In Jesus’ name.,Amen!”

If you prayed that prayer, why not click the “Yes” button below and let us help you take the next step.

-Bill Hennessy

 

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Tim Tebow: Christ Comes First

Tim TebowDenver Broncos Quarterback, Tim Tebow, was taken to task recently by Jake Plummer for his outward display of faith in Christ.  The ESPN radio interview caused quite a stir when Plummer said, “I think he’s a winner and I respect that about him. I think that when he accepts the fact that we know that he loves Jesus Christ, then I think I’ll like him a little better.”

Is it right for Christians to make their faith such a prominent part of their lives? Should Christians try to share their Christian experience with others?  What can we learn from Tebow’s commitment to honor Christ?

Tebow responded this way: “If you’re married, and you have a wife, and you really love your wife, is it good enough to only say to your wife ‘I love her’ the day you get married? Or should you tell her every single day when you wake up and every opportunity?

“And that’s how I feel about my relationship with Jesus Christ is that it is the most important thing in my life. So any time I get an opportunity to tell him that I love him or given an opportunity to shout him out on national TV, I’m gonna take that opportunity. And so I look at it as a relationship that I have with him that I want to give him the honor and glory anytime I have the opportunity. And then right after I give him the honor and glory, I always try to give my teammates the honor and glory.

“And that’s how it works because Christ comes first in my life, and then my family, and then my teammates. I respect Jake’s opinion, and I really appreciate his compliment of calling me a winner. But I feel like anytime I get the opportunity to give the Lord some praise, he is due for it.”

Tim Tebow understands that Christians are called to share faith.  In fact,on any given  Sunday, Christians gather together to study the Bible, share faith, offer encouragement and find inspiration.  These are the elements of the Christian faith that make Church important to people like Tim Tebow.  If you would like to see what a church service looks like online, you can visit: http://GlobalChristianCenter.com and watch an inspiring message, enjoy great worship music and perhaps begin your own relationship with Jesus Christ.

If you want to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior today, you can do so. It begins with a prayer: “Dear Jesus, I want to serve You forever. Please forgive me for the wrongs things I have done. I surrender my life to you and declare that Jesus Christ is Lord. In Jesus’ name,  Amen.

If you prayed that prayer today, please let us know by clicking the button below. Someone will be in touch with you to help you take the next step.

-Bill Hennessy

 

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Taylor Swift’s Songs Express Desire for Acceptance and Love

Taylor Swift is flying high today after winning in three American Music Award categories: Artist of the Year, Favorite female country artist, and Favorite Country Album.  It was a big night for the star who has often written about wanting unconditional love and acceptance.  She let us see into her soul in the song “Mean:” 

Why you gotta be so mean? You, with your switching sides and your walk-by lies and your humiliation. You, have pointed out my flaws again as if I don't already see them. I'll walk with my head down trying to block you out 'cause I'll never impress you. I just wanna feel okay again.

Relationships are risky.  We want to feel loved and yet many times don’t know what love is.  Things become complicated when we begin to fear rejection.  Broken relationships lead to heartache and many people give up on finding true love.

Taylor Swift has mastered the art of putting her personal pain into song.  She said:  "I thought people might find them hard to relate to, but it turned out that the more personal my songs were, the more closely people could relate to them." Finding a way to express the meaning of love has been the key to many successful songwriters.  

Somehow, people like Taylor Swift seem able to put themselves in our shoes; they demonstrate an uncanny understanding of the pain of rejection that we cannot express ourselves. They capture our thoughts about the meaning of love and the heartache that comes from being rejected. It’s called “empathy.”

If you have been looking for unconditional love, there is someone who understands your need. He understands the pain of rejection and He knows how to demonstrate love toward you. His name is Jesus Christ. He empathized with our need for love and acceptance. It mattered to Him so much that He came and lived among us. He demonstrated His love for us by dying in our place before we even understood our need. 

Jesus offers you a way to experience real love, but you need to respond to His offer. It begins with a prayer like this: “Dear Jesus, I am sorry for the wrong things I have done. I need Your forgiveness and love. Please accept me as I choose to accept You today. Please become Lord and Savior of my life so I can understand true love. In Jesus’ name, amen!” 

If you prayed that prayer today, you can click the button below and someone will contact you to help you take the next step forward. 

-Bill Hennessy

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