Eventually I want to address enlightenment—but turtles come first. I have always loved turtles and their drier cousins, tortoises. I don’t know what it is about them, or about me, that makes them seem so fascinating and affable. The other day I was walking along the Potomac River near a little old railstop/canal-stop/Indian crossroads called Old Town. I was fishing for small-mouth bass, but I always keep my eyes open for turtles. Sure enough, in the shallows near a steep mud bank, a large snapping turtle, smaller than a trash can lid but bigger than a Frisbee, was ambling along, half-bounding, half-drifting, like an astronaut on the moon...

We’d like to make you aware of a wonderful ministry, the Maranatha Family Centre (MFC), a registered church and charity organization in Kenya. Their mission is to show God’s love to hurting souls and to help children in difficult circumstances. Their orphanage takes care of children who are abandoned, neglected, sexually, physically, emotionally, and psychologically abused, orphaned, street children and children with disabilities. MFC’s desire is to tailor to the need of each child and provide food, shelter, clothing, education, health care, guidance and spiritual wellness by exposing them to God’s love. Since 2004 MFC staff has worked hard to support the orphanage and they now have a nursery and pre-unit classes for children who are below six years of age. They offer sewing classes for youths who are out of school, which have provided several girls with the opportunity to get better paying jobs and some of those girls are now self employed. The center is registered with the Kenyan government and authorized to care for orphans....

The divinity of the Christ has been a difficult point in the Christian church almost as far back as we have records. Jesus says very little about it himself. He states, “I and my Father are one,” but then He goes on to include his disciples in that oneness, promising them that they will also be one with each other. He said, “Before Abraham was I Am”, taking the name reserved for the God when he led the Israelites in the wilderness. The Jews understood this to be a claim to divinity and they picked up stones to kill him. However the interpretation of the Jews is not conclusive. One of the most interesting times when he seems to accept the label of divine is when the question is put to him directly during his trial. His only reply was “As you say”, but this seems to be a tactic acceptance of the charge that he claimed divinity. At the very least he did not take the opportunity to deny it.

But if we accept that Jesus was in fact the third member of the Godhead we still have trouble understanding how it could be. Could a man who walked and talked among us, who got tired and hungry and cried over the loss of a friend, possibly be God? After all, when we think of God we immediately think of His power, His majesty, and His glory. We associate “divinity” with these tokens of what we want our God to be. We want a powerful God, one who can protect us from the unknown. So, when we see “God” walking around, asking for a drink of water and saying “the meek shall inherit the earth” we have trouble seeing God in there anywhere...

Does God punish the child who is already dying?  “Of course not," some of us say. Then why do many Christians promote the idea that God must punish the sinner?  The implications of this popular scenario, pumped out of countless pulpits worldwide, are disturbing.  God gave an entire planet to mankind – a planet fully stocked with goodies and he blessed them (Gen 1:28).  He plants a Knowledge Tree in the middle of the garden, allows it as a dwelling place for an evil sentient serpent and then explains to the Adam and Eve they are truly free and  that freedom comes with natural consequences – some leading to life, others to ruin.  The reptile, knowing his boundary, uses his cunning to deceive the man and woman into slipping him the key that unlocks this boundary. It’s very deliberate – the man and woman’s involvement.   

Next thing we know, we have a couple cowering  in the brambles to escape the wrath of their Father they know so well.  Their Father comes, finds their covert hiding place, and then we read what appears to be this same loving Father - who just handed them a galaxy system as a wedding gift - inflicting a pretty harsh sentence.   Some of us were told as children it was punishment that Adam and Eve deserved for being bad and then we grew up to tell our children who have told their children.  Today we have a picture of God who is no more than a harsh authoritarian who runs his universe on the reward punishment system - a system that we know does not work just by opening our eyes and taking a look around.  I’d like to suggest that this assumption, many of us grew up with, is flawed...

We are pleased to announce the release of the The Good News Tour 2008 5-Disc DVD set. We've also decided to use this opportunity to reveal our new and updated "Servant to the World" which has become synonymous with The Good News Tour. The picture you see here was illustrated by Lars Justinen who was commissioned by HeavenlySanctuary.com to create this thought-provoking painting.

The world leaders depicted (from left to right): Chancellor Angela Merkel (Germany), Prime Minister Stephen Harper (Canada), President Barack Obama (United States), President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (Iran), President Vladimir Putin (Russia), Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (India) & President Kim Il-sung (North Korea). The Man who is washing their feet is the Lord Jesus Christ (King of the Universe).

The Good News Tour is an ongoing conference that is entirely about God. The message about God’s kindness is open to everyone who desires to listen. The Creator of The Universe has revealed Himself in many ways, but most clearly in the life of Jesus – God in the flesh.

Despite Jesus’ revelation, God’s character has been tainted and misunderstood by many throughout the last 2000 years. We desire to make Him known and make public the beauty of His Person - His kindness, His humility, His never-ending forgiveness.

The Good News is entirely about God - that He is just like Jesus in character. This Good News has the power to transform those who are willing to listen. His kindness is the power that can change human beings into a people who are free to experience unity - a people who have God’s law of love and liberty written on their hearts.

CLICK HERE for more information.