Posted on 09/08/2008 7:19:57 AM PDT by colorcountry
1 Thessalonians 5:21 But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good. (Read 1 Thessalonians 5:19-23.)
On July 20, 2001 FBI agent Kenneth Williams e-mailed FBI headquarters in New York. Mr. Williams had discovered a potential threat to Amerian security: several men with ties to Osama bin Laden were attending flight training schools in Arizona. Mr. Williams' memo expressed his concern that bin Laden could be using American flight schools to train terrorists, he urged FBI officials to further investigate and check the visas of foreigners enrolled in other aviation academies in the United States. The memo was ignored. Two months later, using airplanes as weapons, Osama bin Laden launched a horrific attack on this nation. Almost three thousand people were killed; America will never be the same.
Mr. Williams had a hunch - a feeling - that something wasn't right. His superiors, overworked with understaffed departments, gave little thought to the Phoenix memo. They dismissed it as speculative and insignificant. Nobody knows what would have happened if they had taken the time to investigate, but everyone now knows it should have been taken seriously.
Spiritual discernment is at least as important. Many people and organizations make spiritual claims. Whether you embrace them - or choose not to - your decisions can have eternal consequences. You may have a "hunch" about something, or you may not. Either way, safety lies in following upwith a full and careful investigation.
John O'Neill, then top counterterrorism agent in New York, was the Pheonix memo that July. In August he retired from the FBI and took a job as the security chief of the World Trade Center. His life ended in the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. Friends, examine evertyhing carefully. Your eternal life depends on it.
Prayer Point: Ask God to five you a desire to know His truth - wherever that may lead you.
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Ping to the non-denominational list.
Ping
Nice.
Not all 30 today but one a day right?
Prayer Point: Ask God to give you a desire to know His truth - wherever that may lead you."
I think many of us pray with an expected outcome in mind and must learn to really MEAN, "Thy will be done".
LOL....
One a day.
I appreciate you tremendously!
You’re welcome. I’m happy to see this series begin. Thanks.
Thank you for the ping. I’ve spent the better part of the last two weeks at my Mother’s bedside in the hospital so I can assure you I’ve felt as close to God as I probably ever have in my life. Taking time to reflect and listen to Him or to listen for Him to speak to you in any way possible, is a help in itself. Feeling His presence when you feel completely alone is a comfort you just can’t explain.
It is so reassuring to hear God, especially when one is under the particularly trying times of health issues concening a loved one. Be blessed by His presence.
My prayers are with you and your mother.
” ... safety lies in following up with a full and careful investigation.”
Wise words to take to heart, ColorCountry. Thanks for the thread.
Y’all have a great day.
BR
Thank you - sometimes in our busy lives we do forget how important it is to take the time to listen.
That’s why we need to ask God for the gift of discernment.
I’ve had it happen to me more than once, that feeling that something just wasn’t right or that something was going on that shouldn’t be and more times than I can count, it’s been proved true.
My faith does not rest on *feelings* but God can lead and direct through them. I use them as a caution, something to make me think or investigate before I act.
Discernment is one of my gifts from the Lord, and it is wonderful. To quote my son....”she busts me on stuff she doesn’t even know about!”
I’ve had the same thing happen. I trust the Holy Spirit within to let me know if I’m getting off on the wrong track.
LoL! That is so TRue! To quote my own son.....”How could you possibly know that???”
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