Discontinuing This Blog

Just a note to let any who may stumble on to this blog that as of 10/1/09 it has been discontinued.

If you are on Facebook, you can join the ExecutableOutlines.com "fan page" which I am using to inform others of updates to the EO website, along with other notes of interest, such as information on books, preaching, evangelism, software, websites, and interesting news.

For those of you who may have visited this blog in the past, and especially posted comments, thank you! I hope you can join me on Facebook.

Downloading Hudgins' Chart Sermons

As mentioned previously, I have uploaded a total of 299 chart sermons by my father-in-law, Steve Hudgins, to my web site. The screen show below gives you an idea what to expect:



I've recently added suggestions on downloading Steve Hudgins' Sermon Charts one at a time or all at once, and how to incorporate them into a PowerPoint presentation.

Click on this link. The instructions are below the slide show.

H.E. Phillips Website

For those of you who knew him, and for anyone looking for good Bible study material, articles, sermons, podcasts, etc., check out this new website devoted to the life and work of H. E. Phillips:

HEPhillips.org

I might add that the website was created by Beth McNabb, wife of Allan McNabb whose own website is a treasure store of Bible study materials:

BibleStudyGuide.org

Allan is the person who helped me set up ExecutableOutlines.com as a virtual domain. With Allan's web expertise and Beth's graphic design talents, they would be a good source to turn to if you need web design services. You can email Beth at: ImageBuildingWebDesign.

A New Blog, Seek Ye First The Kingdom

Dear Brethren,

Brother Leo Nikoldze is a faithful member of the West End congregation (the spiritual family of which I am a part, and with whom I labour here in Toronto). Leo is set to begin his third year at the University of Toronto this Fall and is a brilliant student, but his true passion is for the Lord and to do His will.

Leo has recently begun a blog called, Seek Ye First the Kingdom. I am proud of my young brother and I want to encourage you to check out his writings, subscribe to the blog, leave helpful
comments, etc...

Leo is a great and much beloved friend, very much like a son to me in the faith.

I pray that you are all thriving in the faith!

Your Friend and Brother,

John Maddocks

Apologetics Press Response to the Ida Fossil

If you have been keeping up with the news this past week, you have no doubt heard about "the most significant scientific discovery of recent times”, that being the fossilized remains of, Ida, purported to be a link between man and his ancient primate ancestry.

On the Apologetics Press website is an excellent article, refuting these outrageous claims. You can read the article here:

http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/240160

Many thanks to groups like Apologetics Press for refuting, clearly and plainly, the boastful claims of those who claim to be wise in the scientific world.

Contend earnestly for the faith brethren,

John Maddocks

UPDATE

Here is another excellent article on this subject, this time from Answers in Genesis:

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/05/19/ida-missing-link

And yet another great article, this one from Creation Ministries International

http://creation.com/darwin-fossil-ida-hype

Audio Sermons By Shawn Jeffries

During May 15-17, 2009, the church at Fortune Road in Kissimmee where I preach was blessed to have Shawn Jeffries speak on the theme "Finding God's Answer To Our Questions."

Shawn is the preacher for the Beverly Shores Church of Christ in Leesburg, Florida. I was privileged to serve the same congregation from 1984-1989.

Shawn's sermons at Fortune Road were recorded and I am happy to share them with you in MP3 format:

• What Will You Do With Jesus?
• Who Do I Hurt When I Am Unfaithful To God?
• Why Am I A Member Of The Church Of Christ?
• Who Will Go To Heaven?
• Why Do I Need To Be A Christian?

If you wish to be challenged regarding your faith in God and your personal relationship with Him, check out the above sermons.

You should also consider inviting him to speak at your congregation.

What Makes Logos Books So Special

Here's a blog entry along with video to illustrate how useful the Libronix Digital Library System (LDLS) can be:

What Makes Logos Books So Special

The Power Of An Invitation

The Christian Post had an interesting article on the recent results of a survey by Lifeway Research:

Americans Most Likely to Try Out Church through Family, Friends

From the article:

Over half of Americans say they would visit a church if they receive a personal invitation from a family member, friend or neighbor, a new study shows.

The latest LifeWay Research survey found that people are most willing to hear about a local congregation through a family member (63 percent) and through a friend or neighbor from the church (56 percent). Less than half are open to receive information about a church any other way, such as through an advertisement.

"We want to help Christians discover what approaches work best in today’s culture," said Ken Weathersby, senior strategist for evangelization at the North American Mission Board, according to LifeWay. "It’s not about changing the Gospel, but determining how best to share it."

Some other interesting information from the article:

The survey, which LifeWay says may be the largest survey ever conducted on Americans' receptivity to different methods of church invitations, shows that conversations are the best way to invite someone to hear about Christ.

"The primary lesson North American believers should learn from this research is that many of your unchurched friends are ready for an invitation to conversation," said Ed Stetzer, director of LifeWay Research, in the report. "Unbelievers next door still need a simple, personal invitation to talk, to be in community and to church. Clearly, relationships are important and work together with marketing."

Also, Americans are most likely to be open to invitations from non-denominational churches. They are least likely to be open to invitations from Mormons.

Regarding follow-ups to those who have been introduced to a community of faith, the only time a majority of Americans would respond positively is through a postcard from a church advertising upcoming talks on topics that matter to them.

Reading this article reminded me of one of my sermon outlines: "The Power Of An Invitation".

Often, all it takes is for someone to ask another, "Come and see . . ."

Convert PDF to Word

Good Day Brethren,

Available now for free, you can convert any pdf document to word, online.

Below is a write up on the service from the website, and a link to access it.

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Using our PDF-to-Word conversion technology, you can quickly and easily create editable DOC/RTF files, making it a cinch to re-use PDF content in applications like Microsoft Word, Excel, OpenOffice, and WordPerfect.
Best of all, it's entirely free!

www.pdftoword.com

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I hope this may be of use to some. All the very best of the day brethren,

John

Praying Through the Bible

Brother Edwin Crozier has posted a great article today on praying through the Bible with your family, which you can read here, Pray Through the Bible.

It is well worth your time to read this short article and I would encourage you to put this simple exercise into practice with your family. I'm going to with mine starting today!

Make today a fruitful one brethren,

John Maddocks