Sharing My Heart

I came across an article I wrote and posted on Facebook on 07/09/2015. As I read it again, I am amazed at how things have changed in our nation, and sadly, not for the better. I'm reposting the article, and then after the article I am going to explain the reason for the repost. I hope anyone who reads this will read it all the way through, and then pass it around to as many people as possible.

The Article posted on 07/09/2015:

I want to share with you why I am doing these videos. This may sound corny, hackneyed, old fashioned and the like, but I love Jesus, I love the Christian Church and I love America. Over the past several years the Lord has increasingly laid on my heart a heavy burden for the Church and America as a whole. Each year the burden has gotten heavier. My usual nature is one of "go along to get along." Anyone who knows me knows that I love to have fun, I generally try to keep and make peace. It is not and has not been my intention to bash the Church or America, although I have been saying some pretty hard things. I am not being negative just to be negative. With the research I have been doing and what I have been feeling in the spirit, America has to wake up about where we are and where we are headed. The only way for America to wake up is for the Church to wake up. We've been asleep at the wheel. We've allowed "spiritual political correctness" infiltrate our Churches all because we want to appear to being loving and reasonable. We don't want to be seen as intolerant, elitist or anything perceived as negative.

Well, the truth is Jesus was the most polarizing man to ever walk the planet. Yes He was loving and compassionate, but He was also capable of cracking people over the head with a spiritual 2 by 4. It's there in the gospels. In the book of Acts, the Apostle Paul would speak and sometimes riots would break out. The Christian Church in America is no where near the powerhouse it was in the book of Acts. Back in February of 1988, Jesus spoke to my heart about How He desires to restore the Church to the way it moved in power in the book of Acts. The Church in the book of Acts, by the power and grace of God would turn America around. Some might say, "It's the end times, it's all going to go to hell in a handbasket anyway. Let's just wait for Jesus to come back and fix it." To that statement I say this, in Acts chapter one, the disciples ask Jesus if the kingdom would at that time be restored to Israel. Jesus said, "It is NOT FOR YOU TO KNOW times or seasons the Father has put in His own authority." Jesus went on to say to "BE My witnesses." The word witnesses has in it's meaning to be proof and evidence. We as Christians are to be the proof and evidence of who He is. Why should anyone believe that Jesus is the Son of God, much less come back again, when we serve God on our terms instead of serving Him on His terms?

Also in Luke 19 because the crowd Jesus was with "thought the kingdom would IMMEDIATELY appear," He tells a parable in which He states, "Occupy until I come." Occupy has in it's meaning to carry on a business or to busy oneself with business or trade. In other words, Jesus doesn't want us concerned with things that are NOT FOR US TO KNOW-He wants us focused on being His proof and evidence and our business is to be as He put it in Matthew 28:19 which is to make DISCIPLES of all nations. This is more that just telling people that they need to get saved and getting them baptized in the Holy Spirit. Making people disciples takes time, and effort. And it means our being disciples as well. Disciple also has the idea of the student becoming like the master.

My writing the book, "Sound the Alarm..." and doing these videos is not about me trying to become a household name-it is about trying to put a spark in someone else's heart that just might be able to set the Church and America on the right course again. Don't ever think to yourself, "I'm only one person, what can I do?" The Bible and history are replete with the course of things changing due to one person being willing to face things and not back down. Read the book of Judges and find out about Gideon. You might be the next Gideon, the next Daniel, the next Paul, the next George Washington. Anything is possible with God. And this is why I do it.

Back to today, 07/09/2023. Here is the reason I am reposting the above article. On this past July 4, my wife Deborah and myself went to see “Sound of Freedom” with Jim Caviezel, who played Jesus in the film, “The Passion of the Christ.” It is a very disturbing film. Although disturbing, although dark, the darkness portrayed is not glorified, and the darkness is dispelled by hope. The darkness is only there to show the depths of depravity that exists in the shadows that needs to be exposed.

Considering the content of the story, it could have been much more dark, and it could have been very graphic. However, it was done very tastefully. It is a true story of a Federal Agent, Timothy Ballard who quits his secure job in the Federal Agency to rescue children who become victoms of child sex slavery. Audiences by and large have been highly favorable about the film, although people have been very sobered by it. However, there are groups of people, media, organizations that have slammed the film as basically being cheap entertainment for right wing conspiracy nuts. It is not. My wife and I have seen the film. I find it intersting that those who have been critizing the film have not at all talked about the film as far as acting, editing, photography, writing, etc. The critiques are primarily trying to convince people that the level of child sex slavery is imaginary. It is not as widespread as the film depicts, they say. They also try to link the makers of the film as being in league with Q'Anon which is patently a lie.

Even if the child sex slavery isn't as widespread, they are not denying the existence of it, therefore any amount of this evil trade is something that should not be tolerated at any level. Sadly, it is more widespread than the critics would have us not to believe.

I Googled Child Trafficking in the United States alone. The stats say 365,000 children go missing in the US every year. The percentage of the 365,000 missing children that are victims of trafficking is 30%. That means approximately 109,000 children ages 18 and under are bought and sold as sex slaves. This criminal enterprise takes in $150 billion a year. Monitarily it has surpassed all crimina enterprises. Even more disgusting is the fact that the number one consumer of this is the United States of America.

“Sound of Freedom” was actually made 5 years ago. The makers of this film had to overcome obstical after obstical to get the film out due to opposition to it. It causes one to wonder, just how many people, politicians (Republican and Democrat) Hollywood elites, media people, musicians of all genre's are either directly involved in this evil enterprise, or if not directly involved in the trafficking, how many people participate. With all the past and current “investigations” I believe this should be at the top of the list.

What all of this should prove to us is how desparately we need revival. Not just a revival of thrills and chills, but a revival of heart-rending purification and repentance. This needs to start with Christians. This needs to start with the American Christian Church. We cannot expect revival in America until the American Christian Church has a revival that starts with deep repentance. This kind of thing would never happen, or at the very least be minimized if the American Christian Church was moving in the power of the Holy Spirit the way the first century church in the book of Acts did.

I do not know why “Sound of Freedom” is being labled as a faith based movie. God is mentioned only twice, and Jim Caviezel's character quotes one Scripture while arresting a child sex trafficker. The times God is mentioned, Jim Caviezel's character says, “God's children are not for sale.” Another character that helps Jim Caviezel's character says, “When God tells you to do something, you do it.” The Scripture Jim Caviezl's character quotes is Matthew 18:6 when Jesus says, “But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in Me, it were better for him that a millstone be hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.”

As I mentioned in the article written 07/09/2015, don't say, “I'm only one person, what can I do?” Each of us (I include myself) can start by opening our hearts to God like never before and ask for Him to examine ourselves like never before. If we need to repent, we need to do it. We need to allow God to be a consuming fire in our lives. We also need to ask the Lord to help us be as the church in the book of Acts. We need to pray for the children who have been trafficked, that God would deliver them from the hand of the enemy. We need to pray for God's mighty healing power to bring deep, miraculous healing to those children who have been rescued and reunited with their families. We need to pray for a mighty outpouring like never before in our churches throughout America, and for that revival to spread throughout the nation.

I encourage anyone that reads this article to please go and see, “Sound of Freedom and seek the Lord as to what He would have you do. Love and God bless, Pastor Paul.