Vol. 8 / Issue 2
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Valley Christian Magazine is a free monthly magazine published by Texas Christian Publications a 501c3 non-profit ministry located in the Rio Grande Valley. For advertising information call 956-314-0161. Questions, story ideas, events, or comments call 956-314-0161 or email info@ValleyChristianMagazine.com. Social Media Facebook: @valleychristianmagazine & @valleychristian Instagram: @valleychristianmag Twitter: @vcmagazine Copyright 2017
It is the purpose of Valley Christian Magazine to be a magazine that points people to Jesus Christ. How to trust Him. How to do life with Him. Supported by local businesses, ministries & faithful believers. Valley Christian is a free resource for us all.
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index June 2017
6
Laura Polk
8
Lysa Terkeurst
6
When God Leaves Telling My Flesh No
10 Financial Advice
Your Greatest Assest. Protect It. - Armondo Brennan
12 Outpour 2017
Registration Info
13 Valley Christian Events
Big Daddy Weave, Outpour, GLS 2017
14 James MacDonald Unrelenting Petition
16 Luis Palau
22
Invitarlo!
18 Time with Our Creator God’s Morning Plan
19 Miguel Paredes Book Review
Core Christianity by Michael Horton
20 Greg Laurie
Becareful What You Ask For
21 Kids Talk About God
Two Valley Kids Win Wyoming & Colorado Dude Ranch Trip
22 Music Spotlight
We Are Messengers
23 Dave Ramsey - Dave Says -Don’t Be House Poor -You Can’t Fix It For Her
24 Raul “Rudy” Rodriguez The Restoration Story
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When God Leaves B y La ur a P ol k
I was a shell of the woman I’d been. If you’d known me ten years earlier, you wouldn’t have been able to be around me without seeing God’s hand all over me. I beamed with faith. Even though I’d already been through several tough battles in my life, I was hope-filled and joy-filled and felt called to reach out to other women and share that sense of hope that comes from those who have battled hard and overcome.
But in the days that followed, I began to get a little stronger. I began to long to pray again, even though I couldn’t yet. I began to understand that God wasn’t as far as I thought because He had sent others close to me that could tangibly reach me in His name. If you feel left by God, I want you to do the same. Find your women. Whether they are in your church, in your family, or even online (like mine were), and get real with them. Tell them you have nothing left to hope for. Admit your lack of faith. Lean on them to hold you up. If you can’t find them, find me.
I was quick to pray for them. Quick to comfort them. Quick to encourage them that God would never, ever, ever leave them in a bad situation. Because He loved them. They were His daughters, after all. Daughters of the King. And that was no small thing. But years down the road, as I hit mountain after mountain in my life as a single mom, I began to wonder if those things were even true. That He was real. That He provided. That He protected. Because all I felt from Him was a gaping hole, I’d been financially destroyed, and I lived in fear that my ex would hurt me—if not worse. And this wasn’t my first faith battle. I wasn’t a good Christian girl who grew up in the church and then one day turned around and questioned what her parents had believed. I spent several years investigating my faith before becoming a believer at the age of thirty. My faith was hard-won. But from the moment I found Jesus, I followed Him with gusto. So happy to have someone in my life that would never leave me. Because, sweet friend, I was the poster child for being left behind. Until He left too. And with my head hung in shame, and the miniscule amount of faith that remained somewhere inside me, I approached a group of women that I have ministered with online and told them that I wasn’t sure I believed anymore. That my faith was shot. That God had left me in it, despite what He says in the Bible. And that I was exhausted from trying to believe otherwise when the disproof had become my life. That’s when they stepped in the gap. They held me up. They prayed for me. They reached out and messaged me. They told me that they would believe FOR me. They asked the Holy Spirit to pray for the things that I didn’t know to pray for. They stood shoulder-to-shoulder with me propping me up when I couldn’t stand, much less get to my knees. I cried myself to sleep that night.
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Because this single motherhood is not something we should do alone. It’s a sisterhood that no one else can understand. I stand in solidarity with you in this battle, sweet friend. I stand beside you. And I will hold you up to the One who longs to heal his daughter. Just like my women did for me at the weakest possible moment in my faith. In my life. We want to. Just ask us. Laura Polk is a single mom, author, writer, speaker, and friend. She has written for magazines, such as Focus on the Family, Christian Parenting Today, and Crosswalk. She is author of the upcoming release The Single Mom Challenge. She is a graduate of She Speaks and Christian Communicators. For more information, visit www.laurapolk.com. The Life of a Single Mom Ministries is a global nonprofit committed to seeing no single mom walk alone. Having served more than 46,000 single mothers and 1,500 churches, the goal of the organization is establish support groups for single mothers in cities around the world, while also empowering single moms to grow spiritually, emotionally, physically, financially, and parentally. For more information, visitwww.thelifeofasinglemom.com. All Rights Reserved. Used with Permission. Copyright 2017.
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I don’t like to be in pain. In any way. And if I’m not careful, this aversion to pain can lead to me grabbing at anyone and anything to fill the deep ache in my soul.
If we grasp the full love of Christ, we won’t grab at other things to fill us. Or if we do, we’ll sense it. We’ll feel a prick in our spirit when our flesh makes frenzied swipes at happiness and we’ll pause.
Maybe you can relate. When you’re lonely and you see your ex-boyfriend post a picture with a new girl — laughing, holding hands, and looking like the happiest they’ve ever been — your flesh will want to grab at something. It’s hard not to comfort yourself by texting another guy to grab a little attention and make yourself feel better. When you’re listening to other moms talk about all the progress their children are making in reading and your child can’t even identify letters yet, your flesh will want to grab at something. It’s hard not to throw out a statement to oneup the bragging moms in an area where your child is excelling. And all these things we’re tempted to grab at? They won’t fill us the way we think they will. In the end, they only make us feel emptier. But how do we tell our flesh no when we are desperate for relief? I have discovered that the more we fill ourselves from God’s life-giving love, the less we will be dictated by the grabby-ness of our flesh. One of the most beautiful descriptions of the fullness of God is found in Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:14-19, NIV)
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My favorite part of Paul’s prayer is him asking that we have the power to grasp the fullness of the love of Christ … for then we will be filled with the fullness of God.
June 2017
In this pause lies the greatest daily choice we can make. Am I willing to tell my flesh no, so that I can say yes to the fullness of God in this situation? And this isn’t about us putting on a brave face and hoping for the best when we feel powerless. We have the power through Christ, who is over every power, including the pull of the flesh. When we have Christ, we are full — fully loved and accepted and empowered to say no. This is true on the days we feel it, and it’s still true when we don’t feel Jesus’ love at all. If we live rooted and established in His love, we don’t just have knowledge of His love in our minds, but it becomes a reality that anchors us. Though winds of hurt blow, they cannot uproot us and rip us apart. His love holds us. His love grounds us. His love is a glorious weight preventing the harsh words and hurtful situations from being a destructive force. We feel the wind but aren’t destroyed by it. This is the “fullness of God.” There is power in really knowing this. This isn’t dependent on what you’ve accomplished. Or on another person loving you or accepting you. Nor is it because you always feel full. You are full, because Christ brought the fullness to you. Yes, I am fully loved, fully accepted, and fully empowered to say no to my flesh. Speak that truth in the power He’s given you. Believe that truth in the power He’s given you. Live that truth in the power He’s given you. That’s how we tell our flesh no. That’s how we live fully prepared in the fullness of God.
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VALLEY CHRISTIAN MAGAZINE EVENTS
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Unrelenting Petition by james macdonald
James MacDonald is founding and Senior Pastor at Harvest Bible Chapel in northwest Chicago. James’ teachings can be heard on Walk in the Word, a daily radio program reaching more than 3 million people across North America.
W
hat’s the worst thing happening in your life right now?
It could be something personal and private, known only to you and perhaps one or two others. It could be relational tension in your marriage or between you and one of your children. It could be a season of major stress at work or school. It could be a health scare, a current threat on the world stage, or a particular worry about your kids or grandkids away at college.
“TRUST THE HEART OF GOD TO PROVE HIMSELF STRONG” It could be anything. The worst thing you can think of. And you do think of it—ten, twenty times throughout the day, if not all day. But how much longer have you been thinking about it than praying about it? The widow in Jesus’ parable from Luke 18 represented someone enduring one of the worst crises imaginable. Like every widow, her husband’s death was a problem entirely outside her control. Furthermore (as you yourself might attest, if you’ve ever dealt with being wronged, abused, neglected, or betrayed), her experience of injustice was among the hardest things anyone ever faces. And to top it all off, the judge in her town—the only one capable of helping her—was absolutely disinterested and
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Will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? Luke 18:7–8, ESV
unmotivated to do anything about it. She was on her own. With no avenue for appeal. Without a prayer. Yet she kept on coming. And by way of her fictional story, God gives us all the reason we need for persisting in prayer ourselves. For if the epitome of a cruel, unjust, atheistic, self-centered government official—“a judge who neither feared God nor respected man” (Luke 18:2)—could be moved to action on this widow’s behalf, why would our Father not be moved to bless and assist His children? “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). After already giving us His best, what would possibly prevent Him from giving us the rest? To not persist in prayer, then, boils down to a failure to understand the character of God. Because anyone who knows the Father’s heart, or what the Son has given, or who follows the guidance of the Holy Spirit will realize what’s available to us through the vehicle of prayer. His known character is proof enough. God is just, bringing justice to His people. God is good, acting on our behalf. God is attentive, always hearing the persistent prayers of those who come to Him with clean hands and a pure heart. God is holy, faithful to work on those parts of us that keep us from experiencing freedom and hopeful confidence, even as He responds to our prayers with compassion, grace, and power. Many lean on the crutch of addiction instead of
June 2017
trusting God’s heart for what they need. Some depend on a drug prescription to assuage what persistent prayer could resolve. Others continue nursing the wounds of their past because they don’t believe God is either willing or able to fill the emotional holes they feel they’ve been left to compensate for. But even if you think you’re watching the worst-ofthe-worst unfold—even if it looks like it’s as bad as it can get, with the hope of relief seeming to be an impossible dream—trust the heart of God to prove your fears and discouragements wrong. And to prove Himself just and strong.
j ou r na l •Write out some descriptors you know to be true about the character and nature of God. •How well does your prayer life reflect what God proclaims His character to be?
P r ay
Lord, You are good, and You are faithful. You are omnipotent and the fount of all wisdom. You are merciful and gracious, compassionate and kind. You are diametrically opposed to sin, yet tenderly inclined to lift up the worst of sinners. I come today worshiping and remembering who You are, who You’ve been, and who You will still prove to my heart that You are, as I trust and pray in the pure and holy name of Jesus, amen.
“A Purpose in life, a reason for learning”
Reaching Success through Dual Enrollment
¡Invitarlo! -Luis Palau Cómo llegar a ser un cristiano verdadero ¡Invitarlo!
¡Qué alegría es abrirle la puerta de nuestra casa a un amigo a quien amamos, anhelamos ver y le damos una gran bienvenida! Salomón solía decir: «? el amigo verdadero se mantiene más leal que un hermano» (Proverbios 18:24 NTV). El amigo que es más leal que un hermano es nuestro Señor Jesús. Él golpea a la puerta de nuestro corazón y dice: «He aquí, yo estoy a la puerta y llamo; si alguno oye mi voz y abre la puerta, entraré a él, y cenaré con él, y él conmigo» (Apocalipsis 3:20).
Pase a ser un verdadero cristiano, obtenga la salvación, Dios se la ofrece a todo el que quiere. Apocalipsis 22:17 dice el que quiera venga: «Y el que tiene sed, venga; y el que quiera, tome del agua de la vida gratuitamente». Pero usted tiene que abrir la puerta de su vida. Su corazón es como una puerta cerrada que únicamente se puede abrir de adentro y Jesús está golpeando a la puerta.
Tiene que pedirle a Cristo que lo salve. Romanos 10:13 dice: «? todo aquel que invocare el nombre del Señor, será salvo». No solo tiene que creer en él, confesarlo con la boca, recibirlo en el corazón, tiene que abrir la puerta de la casa de su alma e invocar el nombre del Señor Jesús. El apóstol Pablo le dijo a un señor que estaba a punto de suicidarse: «Cree en el Señor Jesucristo, y serás salvo, tú y tu casa» (Hechos 16:31).
Incline su cabeza y hable con Dios, ábrale la puerta de su vida e invoque el nombre del Señor creyendo en Jesús y él lo salvará.
Luis Palau
Luis Palau ya entró en la historia moderna como uno de los contados hombres que le hablaron a más personas en el mundo. Su mensaje fue, y es escuchado por más de 800 millones de personas en 112 países a través de la radio y la televisión, y tiene el privilegio de haberle hablado a más de 22 millones de personas cara a cara en 80 países del mundo, organizando, junto a un selecto grupos de colaboradores internacionales y con el apoyo de invitaciones locales, congresos, seminarios, charlas informales, conferencias y recitales-conferencia llamados “Festivales”. Copyright 2017 Used by Permission.
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God’s Morning Plan Author: Grandfather El, Contributors Grandchildren: Noah, Photography and Editing: Ali Thank you, Lord, that when I finish my day and rest at night I can look forward to Your promise that in the morning You will have for me new mercy, grace, and love for the day. “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 Your faithfulness has been proven over and over in believers’ lives. Impress upon me the significance that You place on the morning time and the impact that using the beginning of the day correctly can have on my relationship with You. Show me how it sets the atmosphere for the rest of my day. “Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I trust; cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You.” Psalm 143:8 Lead me to receive the joy You have for me by spending my first waking moments in fellowship with You. Remind me not to put my feet on the floor in the morning without greeting You and connecting with You first. I ask that my prayer life will follow Jesus’ example in Mark 1:35 “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.” Father, I bring these thoughts to You in Jesus’ Name, Amen. Find more readings at timewithourcreator.wordpress.com
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Book Title: Core Christianity Author: Michael Horton Publisher: Zondervan
Who are you at your core? If your faith is in Christ, you are a Christian. Do you know what it means to be a Christian? What do Christians believe about God? Michael Horton addresses basic beliefs in Core Christianity. Unlike many theology books, his approach is not academic. This book is for the Christian who is engaged in everyday life with little time for reading a lengthy in depth 200 plus book about theology. The language is simple and the content is deep. He takes God’s truth and makes is accessible and understandable. Horton uses four Ds to guide the reader through core beliefs: drama, doctrine, doxology, and discipleship. The biblical drama is the story of God from which the doctrine, teachings, are derived. In the Bible, the drama and doctrines about God often result in doxology, praise to God. Doxology directed appropriately to God produces roots of love for God and for people. Discipleship is the embodiment of the story, teachings, and praise. Core Christianity begins with the essential truth that Jesus is God. Horton explains with the story that is presented in the Old Testament. After recounting the story, he then covers the teaching about the deity of Christ is crisp and simple language. He clearly explains some of the history of the doctrine of Christ and some of the false teachings that the early church confronted and clarified. Faith in the God-Man results in praise and thanksgiving for the salvation that is offered by God through Jesus. As Horton walks the reader through the first three Ds, he explains that the person who engages with the drama, doctrine, and doxology then must come to terms with Jesus and decide for herself whether she will become an active disciple. The other doctrines Horton discusses are: The Trinity, the person of God, how God speaks, humanity and sin, salvation, and the end times. Each of the topics is covered with great simplicity. The reader will remain engaged throughout the book. This book is highly recommended for people who are new to the faith and for middle school and high school students. This book will also help those who have muddled theology with overly intelligent sounding language. This book is beneficial for all who want to be reminded of the simplicity of the message that God graciously reveals to humanity.
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Book Review by
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Miguel Paredes Is a teacher at Edinburg North and earned his Masters in Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary. He is married to Brenda and has four children: Diego, 14, Karla & Andrea, 11, and Charis, 7 .
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Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat?” —Numbers 11:4
A
A story in the Old Testament tells of how God supernaturally provided for the children of Israel on a daily basis as they walked through the wilderness to the Promised Land. Every morning when they came out of their tents, something called manna would be waiting there for them. All they had to do was pick it up off the ground and eat it. But after a while, they got sick of eating manna. They basically said, “We’re sick of manna. We remember the good old days back in Egypt when we ate garlic, leeks, and onions. And most of all, we remember meat.” The funny thing is that when the devil reminds us of our past, we often look at it through rose-colored glasses. He will say, “Remember the good old days? Remember those times when you partied? Remember the fun?” But he never says, “Remember how empty you were? Remember the guilt that would never go away? Remember that depression you constantly found yourself in? Remember how afraid you were to die?” He never says that. Instead, he reminds us of the few good times we had. But the bad times outweigh them. God gave the complaining Israelites what they wanted, and the Bible says it rained quail—so much so, they were knee-high in quail. But it turned bitter in their mouths. How foolish we are when we try to keep God out of our lives as we blindly pursue our plans and passions. Many times God will not let us get what we’re after. But sometimes He will. He’ll let us get what we want so we’ll see that it isn’t what we thought it was. Once you’ve tasted of the living water that Jesus gives, the polluted streams of this world never will satisfy again.
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Greg Laurie is Senior Pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, Calif. He began his pastoral ministry at 19 by leading a Bible study of 30 people. Since then, God has transformed the small group into a church of 15,000 plus, one of the largest churches in America. for more, visit www.greglaurie.com. used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie, PO Box 4000 Riverside, CA 92514 Copyright © 2017 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Two Valley Children Win Wyoming & Colorado Dude Ranch Family Vacations
McAllen -- Sixteen Valley children and their families gathered Saturday night at the Art Village on Main Event Center in McAllen, all hoping to win a weeklong vacation at Medicine Bow Lodge & Adventure Guest Ranch in Saratoga, Wyoming or Coulter Lake Guest Ranch in Rifle, Colorado. This was the second year in a row that the RGV Children’s Arts Festival awarded two dude ranch family vacations, one to a child in each of two age groups. Pediatrician Dr. Martin Garza of DLC Pediatrics in Edinburg, decked out in his tuxedo, came prepared to open the envelopes and announce the winners. As he opened the envelope to announce the winner for the kindergarten through third-grade division, one could almost hear the hearts of the young finalists thumping with anticipation. “The 2017 RGV Children’s Arts Festival winner of a week at Coulter Lake Guest Ranch in Rifle, Colorado is Briana Benavides,” said Garza. Seven-year-old Briana is the daughter of Carlos and Diana Benavides of Brownsville. The Benavides family will ride horses in the Colorado Rockies for a week in early June at elevations around 8,000 feet. Briana’s winning art and writing can be seen in Chapters 38 & 42 of the “Kids Color Me Bible Gospel of John” at www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org/kcmbgj. For the announcement of the second winner in the fourth through sixth grade division, arts festival co-founder Carey Kinsolving once again turned to the man in the tux, Dr. Martin Garza. “The 2017 RGV Children’s Arts Festival winner of a week at Medicine Bow Lodge & Adventure Guest Ranch in Saratoga, Wyoming is Claire Bauer,” said Garza. Claire’s winning art and writing can be seen in Chapter 33 of the “Kids Color Me Bible Gospel of John” at www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org/kcmbgj.
Pediatrician Martin Garza of DLC Pediatics in Edinburg announced both winners of the RGV Children’s Arts Festival on Saturday, April 29 at the Art Village on Main Event Center in McAllen. Yoli Cantu of McAllen Stained Glass made three-dimensional, fused-glass renderings of each winner’s art. Winners are Briana Benavides, 7, of Brownsville (left) and Claire Bauer, 12, of Harlingen (right). Bauer won a week’s vacation for her family at Medicine Bow Lodge & Adventure Guest Ranch in Saratoga, Wyoming and Benavides will ride in the Rockies for a week at Coulter Lake Guest Ranch in Rifle, Colorado.
Claire Bauer, 12, is the daughter of Carl and Karen Bauer of Harlingen. Claire is a student at St. Paul Academy. On Monday morning, Karen Bauer said of her daughter, “She’s still in shock. She says, ‘Mom, I still can’t believe I won. I feel like I’m dreaming.’” “Claire is a great example of persistence,” said Kinsolving. “This is her third, consecutive year as a finalist in the RGV Children’s Arts Festival.” Both of the winners’ art pieces are now captured in glass. Artist Yoli Cantu of McAllen Stained Glass created a three-dimensional, fused-glass rendering for each artist. Cantu donated four scholarships to each artist for a class in designing and making fused glass art. In addition to winning dude ranch vacations for their families, Brianna and Claire won checks for $600 each to help pay for travel to Wyoming and Colorado. All 16 finalists received passes for four people to enjoy a Dolphin Watch or Eco Tour cruise courtesy of Breakaway Cruises at South Padre Island and a coupon for a free ice cream cake at any of the Lynn Lee Dairy Queens throughout the Valley. Five-year-old Bethany Bridwell of McAllen placed second in the younger division by painting a picture of a colorful heart throbbing with the love of God. Sophia Villarreal, 9 of Harlingen placed second in the older grade division also with a dramatic drawing of a heart. Both Bridwell and Villarreal won two all-day passes to Schlitterbahn at South Padre Island.
Sixteen Valley children attended the RGV Children’s Arts Festival Awards held at the Art Village on Main Event Center in McAllen on Saturday, April 29. Briana Benavides, 7, won a week-long vacation at Coulter Lake Guest Ranch in Rifle, Colorado. Claire Bauer, 12, and her family will ride through and over the many streams that run through Medicine Bow Lodge & Adventure Guest Ranch in Saratoga, Wyoming. Both winners and families will vacation in June. From left to right: Sophia Villarreal, Caleb Lopez, Rylee Navarro, Presley Guerra, Emily Villarreal, Briana Benavides, Caelan Kirkland, Claire Bauer, Ava Alexander, Forrest Hargrove, Daniela Flores, Andrea Aguilar, Emma Guevara, Alexandra Makai, Dr. Garza, Bethany Bridwell and Isabella Zuniga.
Gold spur sponsors of the arts festival include BCFS Health & Human Services, La Copa Inn of South Padre Island, Boggus Ford, El Pato, pediatrician Dr. Martin Garza, Dairy Queen, Lone Star National Bank and Melba’s Dance School. Children ages 5-12 who live or attend school in the Rio Grande Valley can find five new questions to answer and illustrate for next school year at KidsTalkAboutGod.org/rgv.
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Darren Mulligan left his native Ireland in 2003 to chase a life built on selfish ambition, temporary pleasure and fleeting fame. God had other plans for him. Now leaving Ireland a second time, the man he is today stands in stark contrast to his sordid and troubled past. Darren’s personal testimony and the music of We Are Messengers are a beacon of hope for all. “We see ourselves as messengers carrying the good news,” says Mulligan. “We’re just carrying His message from our hearts up into our mouths and out into our hands. God’s given us something to say through words and songs and through our lives. We ask the same question every day, ‘What is God saying? What opportunity is God bringing?’” This hasn’t always been Mulligan’s desire. His personal history before meeting Christ is colored by selfishness, depravity and desperation. A self-taught guitarist, Mulligan’s love affair with music began when he received a guitar from his parents for Christmas when he was 13. Although he grew up in Ireland, it was American music that shaped his formative years as he listened to everything from Elvis and Johnny Cash to Guns N’ Roses and Nirvana. Though he came from a respected, hardworking blue-collar family, Mulligan strayed from his upbringing early on. “I became this really wretched, selfish, horrible human being,” he admits. “I just wanted to take from everybody.” When he was 19, a chance encounter on an Irish street introduced Darren to his future wife, Heidi, who was just 17 at the time. The two quickly fell in love and were inseparable for the next few years. However, Darren soon abandoned Heidi in favor of a rock star lifestyle in America, chasing money and fame. As a guitarist for a heavy rock band, Mulligan toured the country while his life spiraled out of control. It was during this time that he received a phone call from Heidi, who told him she had become a Christian. “I hated the thought of her being happy; because she sounded happy, while I was miserable,”Mulligan remembers. Shortly thereafter, he decided to leave the band, move back to Ireland and ask her to marry him. Despite the fact that he had no job, no education and no prospects, Heidi said, “yes,” and unbeknownst to Mulligan, she began praying daily for her future husband’s salvation. Three weeks before their wedding, at a time when he was an avowed athiest, Mulligan had a life-altering experience in church. “I felt so wretched, so dirty. I could feel my skin crawling. God seemed so real that night. He seemed so holy. There was this huge chasm between Him and me. I could feel it—this crushing weight of guilt and conviction—so I gave my life to the Lord that night,” he explains, adding, “It took me a few months of reading the Bible
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to really understand what I had done and what that meant. I fell in love with God over that period and gradually learned to see myself as He sees me - clean, a son of the king.” Sure of his calling and determined to follow the leading of God, Mulligan and his wife left their home in Ireland, packed up their belongings and moved their three young children across the globe to Franklin, Tenn. The singer hit the ground running, scheduling daily co-writing sessions. For the next year, he wrote more than 100 songs that were whittled down to 14 for We Are Messengers’ self-titled debut. “We try to write simple songs for a very complicated world,” shares Mulligan, who worked with a list of respected writers and producers for the album, including Josh Bronleewe, Ed Cash and Seth Mosley, among others. “At the very core of what we do is honesty and transparency. We want to be sincere. I want to be vulnerable and write songs that allow people to meet with God right where they are, in their humanity.” His heartfelt authenticity rings true on the scorching cut “I’m On Fire.” “When I fell in love with Jesus, that’s how it felt,” Mulligan says of the cut’s title. “It still feels like that. It still feels like I can’t contain Him in my flesh, that I need to speak about Him. He is a burning fire deep inside my bones. ”Opening track and lead radio single “Everything Comes Alive” echoes similar sentiments, celebrating new life in Christ. “If you imagine your life as a day, what does the Gospel look like?” Mulligan asks, adding that he tried to encapsulate 24 hours as a representation of life with Jesus into this three-minute song. “I was so dead in my sin, but when I acknowledged who I was and who God is, I came alive.” ”We Are Messengers may have left their homeland for the sake of a greater call, but it’s a sacrifice they consider well worth the hefty price. “We’ve been rescued so that we could give ourselves away,”Mulligan maintains. “The Bible says, ‘Lose your life and you’ll find it’; and we’re determined to keep giving ourselves away until we die, so that when it comes to the end of the race, we’re spent, we’re done.”
See We Are Messengers along with Big Daddy Weave & Micah Tyler on August 20th at Boggus Ford Events Center. For more information, check out our Facebook Event Page or call 956-314-0161.
Pass on this deal Dear Dave, My in-laws have inherited some money, and they want to invest in real estate. They have offered to help my husband and I buy a home, but they want ownership of some kind as part of the deal. Is this a good idea? Cynthia
Dear Cynthia, I’d pass on this offer. It’s not a good deal. I’m glad they got some money. I mean, that’s great for them. If they want to do some real estate investing, that’s awesome, too. If they want to give their kids a gift out of the inheritance money, that would be a very nice, generous thing to do. But no, we’re not going for a deal where they have ownership in your home. Things like that end up messy, and it won’t get you where you really want to be. Even if it does, you won’t like the trip!
Dave Says
If you take a deep look into this, you’ll begin to understand there are some things involved that will change the nature of your relationship with your in-laws. Every time you see them and they see you, they’ll see dollar signs. Dinners together will start to taste different, and they’ll feel different, too. Protect your relationships and your family, Cynthia. Please don’t do it. —Dave
You can’t fix it for her Dear Dave, I paid off my house a little over a year ago, and I’m completely debt-free. That’s a good thing, because I recently had some large medical bills and I don’t have quite as much cash as usual on hand. My younger sister recently received a tax bill from the IRS for $30,000. I love her to death, but she’s extremely irresponsible with money and in debt up to her eyeballs. I know how you feel about debt, and I’ve tried to teach her how to handle money, but considering her situation — should I take out a home equity loan of $30,000 to help her? Toni Dear Toni, Absolutely not! Does that mean you don’t love her and care about her? It does not. But you told me she won’t behave with money. You don’t give money to people who won’t behave with the stuff. That kind of behavior doesn’t help anyone, and it doesn’t fix the problem. It’s like giving a drunk a drink. “Help” would be aiding this lady in changing her ways when it comes to finances. If you just give her a fish, it will stink and go bad. You have to teach her to fish. That attitude is not about being mean to her, it’s just where she is in her life. She needs to be educated, not enabled. And it doesn’t mean she’s a bad person, either. It just means you can’t endorse negative behavior or participate in her denial.
* Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business. He has authored five New York Times best-selling books. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 8.5 million listeners each week on more than 550 radio stations. Dave’s latest project, EveryDollar, provides a free online budget tool. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.
Keep trying to teach her, and pray for her. Make sure, too, that she’s in contact with the IRS about a payment plan. I know she’s your little sister, but you can’t fix this one for her. Sometimes the best help you can give someone is to help them change their behavior. That way, they will hopefully learn how to carry their own weight. —Dave
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Raul “Rudy” Rodriguez attorney at law
Some historians may argue that among the greatest restoration stories of mankind are the European Renaissance or perhaps the post-World War II era. The cultural movement known as the European Renaissance roughly took place during the 14th through 17th centuries. This moment in history saw the face of Europe evolve with respect to its arts, architecture and long held science tenets. It also saw a rediscovery of the Greco-Roman classical knowledge and a rebirth of the study of Latin and vernacular languages. It served as a bridge between the Middle Ages and the Modern Era. Closer to home, America saw its restoration take place in the years that followed World War II. During this era, couples who could not afford families during the Great Depression made up for lost time. The mood in America suddenly became optimistic. At that time, the unemployment rate of the Great Depression dropped dramatically and the economy improved substantially. The G.I. Bill empowered many honorable service members to finish high school and attend college. As their skills were improved, so was the financial well-being of their families. But, without a doubt the greatest restoration that can take place is when a person does as Romans 10:9 instructs us to do. Romans 10:9 says: “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.” The message is simple: invite Christ into your heart and make him your personal Lord and Savior. At that time, your restoration will be complete. Next He will do as Philippians 1:6 says, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” As you seek and strive to honor God with your life, He will reward you by allowing you to take on His characteristics. Hosea 14:4 says, “I will bring my people back to me. I will love them with all my heart; No longer am I angry with them.” I pray that you will invite Christ into your heart and allow Him to restore you! At my office, I also want to be part of your restoration plan, albeit in a different way. I pray that God will use me for His honor and glory in helping me address your needs. If you have been involved in an auto accident and/or other serious injury or if you have lost a loved one as a result of someone’s negligence, I will do my best to restore some sense of normality to your life. I will also help you in matters involving family law, criminal law and real estate and will issues. As always, I bear in mind that in honoring God with the way I handle my business relationships I will be honoring you my esteemed client.
Raul “Rudy” Rodriguez
www.raulrudyrodriguezlaw.com Phone: 956.380.1421 / Toll Free: 877.480.1421 Fax: 956.380.2920 / Mobile: 956.655.5455
511 W. University / Edinburg, TX 78539 e-mail: anointed511@gmail.com