There are many books—too many, probably—that show you, say, seven steps to a closer relationship with God, or ways to a better life, or simple steps to freedom, or ideas to evangelize the world around you.  Some steps are simple.  Some of the concepts are complex.  Those that deal with a pursuit of faith are wrapped in theology, rather than in simplicity.  Both are needed.  Jesus Loves You, This I Know is the latter.

The message of Jesus is as simple and concise as the song many of us learned and sang in preschool: 
Jesus loves me, this I know.   Me.  You.

Practically everyone knows that little ditty. Just about everyone we know does, anyway.

But many don’t know the truth and power of that statement.  The first two words are understood, but maybe not embraced; Jesus Loves.  It is the personalization, when it comes to understanding the word, “you”, things get more complex.  Jesus Loves You.

Regardless the culture or point on the globe that we live, there are some universal effects of life.  Everyone faces pain.  Everyone faces problems.  Everyone has purpose.  An all encompassing “you” makes the love of Jesus all inclusive.  This project compels people to see that regardless of where they have been or what they have gone through there is a love that endures all things. 
   
You can be forgotten, love finds.

You can be broken, love mends.

You can be outcast, love includes.

You can be… and love works.

Rather a teacher or rabbi, revolutionary or savior, Jesus moved people.  The stories that follow are inspirational, scriptural, hopeful and medicinal.  People in all facets will glean hope by seeing what is so magnetic about Jesus.  

Consider this:  If someone whose spouse or partner just left them were to read of Jesus compelling love would their life not be in that instance? 

Love never fails.  

Consider the person whose so discouraged that depression has sunk their hope for tomorrow, would their not be a glimmer that gives them strength to press forward. 

Love moves forward.

Love is a power phase packaged as a single word.  For many, it becomes even more complex when the name Jesus is added to it.  Jesus Loves?  For many, even that is embraceable because most think Jesus was a great teacher and inspirational rabbi.  But add one more word to the phrase and the statement is more difficult to handle, Jesus Loves You.

You are complex.  ‘You’ has a lot of layers to it.  Yet the all inclusive, all encompassing love of Christ reaches that far.

Jesus Loves You This I Know is contagious and inspiring book with practical insights ripped from the pages of scripture.  Its affect moves to the core of every human soul stirring the reason for existence.  Despite missed moments in life, broken promises, unraveling relationships or disillusionment with established religion, Jesus Loves You This I Know offers stories of real life people who have experience real life redemption.

Find yourself in the pages. 

Craig and Jason

             BUY NOW

This morning about 7:30, we received a text message with three words, "they are free".

We are so grateful for your help, your prayers, your support for this site and for our efforts to secure Maryam and Marzieh's release.

Your voice, your donations, and your prayers have made a huge difference today in Iran in the lives of these young women.

Praise God.

The FreeThemm Team
Austin, Brandon, David, Robin, Craig, Amy
Jared, Chris, Emily, Patrick, Dawn, Angela



From our friends at ELAM:
------
RELEASED!  Maryam and Marzieh set free after 259 days in prison

Praise the Lord! Maryam Rustampoor and Marzieh Amirizadeh were released from Evin prison in Iran today, Wednesday November 18, 2009 at 3:30pm, without bail. However, they may yet have to face a court hearing and still need our prayers.

“Words are not enough to express our gratitude to the Lord and to His people who have prayed and worked for our release," they said.

Maryam and Marzieh were arrested because of their Christian faith on March 5, 2009. Though their health has suffered greatly while in prison, they are doing as well as could be expected, and are rejoicing in the Lord’s faithfulness to them.

“Maryam and Marzieh have greatly inspired us all. Their love for the Lord Jesus and their faithfulness to God has been an amazing testimony,” says Sam Yeghnazar, Director of Elam Ministries.

We hope to share more details soon.

In the mean time, please pray:

-  For their health to be fully restored.
-  For their continued safety.
-  For their full acquittal.

As a skeptic of religion in general, my friend encouraged me to take a gander at his pre-release copy. With angst, I read the first chapter and was moved by the gut level honesty that the authors wrote with. I have never heard christians own their mistakes, as the authors did, by openly discussing the mis-management of their movement since the first millennium.

Like the above poster, two stories were worth my time (since I got a free read from a borrow). First, I was drawn by the chapter called Jesus Loves the Skeptic. Gross and Harper describe their dinner conversation with a person filled with cynicism and skeptical perceptions of christians. Rather than arguing dogma, the authors described their patient dialog that led to a deeper understanding. As a skeptic, this moved me to understand more of what I needed to see.

Last, was the Jesus Loves the Outcast. I, a self professed outcast, realized that my issues weren't with Jesus, just some of his people.
I gave the book back to my friend, in which he said, "pay it forward."

I have a friend who I WANT to read it. I hope it impacts her the way it moved me.

Still searching, but closer. 

- David

Standing in our vendor booth at the Atlanta Gay Pride Festival caused a commotion of compassion.  Rarely, was there a minute that went by that we were not able to give a white bracelet to the attenders that simply said, "We're Sorry" and pink bracelets that said, "It's True, He does."   The first, begged the question, "Sorry for what?"  For Craig and I, this last stop on the Jesus Loves You This I Know book tour, offered us an opportunity to apologize to the gay community for the way many Christians, Evangelicals, and Fundamentalist have made the gay community their punching bag over the last three decades.  The second reiterated the truth that we have shared is more than a cliche, "Jesus Loves You."
 
Beyond the vendor area and along the parade route, we were able to hand out more than 1000 bottles of water wrapped with the aged old truth, Jesus Loves You This I Know.  In the midst of such a diverse culture, we realized that the traction our book has found created the opportunity for a new conversation that starts with spirituality rather than sexuality.
 
The book is an easy read to take back the message of Jesus that has been high-jacked by zealots and hate mongers who claim to be God's spoke persons.  At Atlanta Pride, we had hundreds of conversations, one person at a time, that helped close the gap that has created polarizing propaganda on both sides.  For us, its simple, Jesus' love is available for anyone.  

Jason and Craig
 

___
I just wanted to say thank you for the opportunity y'all gave us by setting this whole thing up. I didn't get to see you, Craig or Jason before I left the parade today otherwise I would have thanked y'all in person. Although I know we ran out of waters and bracelets really quickly, I really think that we got the chance to touch a lot of people's lives. I didn't get to have too many long talks with people, but the people that my new friend, Brooke, and I got to talk to were very receptive to us and the simple message we brought. We had one group of guys that really appreciated what we were doing. They thanked us repeatedly for being different than all of the other groups that came through talking about Jesus, and for spreading the message that He loved them. I was so excited to just be a part of this. It makes me want to do more. I think I might look into doing one of those weekend trips with you guys. Anyway, I hope you guys will come back to Atlanta soon and let me know when you do because I'd love to serve again sometime. Thanks for everything! -Stephanie

________

I am still undone by the encounters that I had and the prayers I have continued to pray for each person I met.  This sums it up for me:

I know that whatever God does will remain forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.  God does it so that men will revere Him.  (Ecclesiastes 3:14)

Michelle

________

Upon returning from Atlanta Pride Convention, I am still unwinding and replaying the events that happened in my mind.  The Christian community as a whole has really shunned those who call this lifestyle their own.  We wanted to go with a message of love and forgiveness, rather than hate and condemnation.  If we really believe what Romans 8 says, that there is no condemnation in Christ, then we need to spread that message. 

I was taken aback by the gratefulness the parade attenders had for us.  They were so appreciative of us taking the time to show up and let them know that they are loved.  That there is a God that cares for them.  That there are a people who follow Christ and want them to have a bottle of water when they are thirsty. 

We need to continue to take steps in this direction.  To let those who have been outcasted know that it doesn't have to be that way.  We want to love people right where they are, with no strings attached. 

_______

Thanks for everything. I had a great time at Pride being able to spread the love of Jesus with the LGBTQ community of my city. It meant so much to me. Overall, I think we didn't have near enough bottles of water, which means that the mission was accomplished, and I'm so thankful for that. I would have liked to have had more unity and awareness of the other volunteers. I think it would be beneficial, if y'all do this again, to have a recap/debrief afterward, especially because we were all coming from different churches/groups. Otherwise, it was awesome and a great experience.
 
I did have one amazing encounter I'd like to share: I was standing about 20 yards down from the group of "Christians" yelling that Jesus hates the homosexuals and telling them they were going to hell. A friend and I were trying to hand out water bottles, but there were many people passing or ignoring us when they saw the "Jesus" on the bottle. I had struck up a general conversation with a group of men next to me in between handing out bottles sporadically. He finally saw that I was handing out bottles that said "Jesus Loves You," pointed at it and said he was confused because I seemed so friendly. I replied, "the only reason you're confused is because of the what the people are yelling at the corner." He asked me what I meant, and I said that contrary to what they were yelling, I/we believed that the love of Jesus is for all people and readily available for anyone that seeks it.He looked shocked and wide-eyed and said "Wow. THANK you SO much." I also made a point to apologize for any ill treatment that he had received from the church in the past and assured him that is not representative of who Jesus is. The conversation continued a little more and he asked me what church I went to and continued to be so grateful. He made the comment to us, "I can tell you really mean what you say, and it's different. I can see the honesty in your eyes." We then proceeded to end the conversation and I started handing out water bottles more. A couple seconds later all the guys in his group were asking for the water saying they wanted the Holy Water. Then they asked me if I could change it into wine because they couldn't get across the street to the open bar, haha. We joked around about it a little, and then we ran out of bottles and moved on.
 
The people picked up and started grabbing the bottles saying they wanted the "Jesus water" and were for the most part very receptive. Only 2 small hostile encounters, but nothing horrible. Honestly, I did not even expect to have this type of positive encounter with anyone, and I was so blessed to be able to express the love of Christ, even if it was to one person. There was a seed planted, and now I pray God will nourish it and grow it in his heart. Who knows how this experience could affect him. I know it definitely impacted me.
 
Thanks again for everything!
 
Brooke

 ________

Great experience and time.  Wished there was more water.
 
I think my favorite thing to see was when I would offer water and people would figure out what was on the bottle and reject it, because I hadn't gained their trust and then to see the same person with it later because they realized we were truely there to love them and our goals were simple- Love with no strings attached.
 
Much of the time after the water, I spent around the bullhorn people.  Telling those standing around them- that the true message of Christ is His Love for us, and that I apologize for anytime someone has told them differently.
 
One very flamboyant guy dressed in a horrible excuse for drag, I felt like I need to go out from my corner to hand him water.  He said, "Do you want to pray with me..."
-"of course" I said.
then he began, "Dear God, I pray that this man is here not to condemn or hate and that you don't look kindly on that....is that true"  and with full confidence I could say it was.  I was impressed with his cleverness, regardless if he meant it, I think he realized that was true of us and of me for the time being.
 
Hope this encourages you guys to continue on...
You've always got a spot if you need to stay.

@craigxxxchurch -Craig

@bechange - Jason

@stephenkrose - Stephen

-About the Festival

The Piedmont Park Festival grounds are open on Saturday and Sunday, and will host the Pride Stages, Marketplace, and a variety of programming. Use these quick links below to get all your Atlanta Pride Information!

-Jesus Loves the Outcast - October 30-November 1, 2009 - Atlanta Pride Festival, Atlanta, GA.

The authors will be setting up a booth at the Atlanta Pride Festival with the simple message of “We Are Sorry.” Apologizing for the way religious people have treated homosexuals will hopefully return a positive and uplifting response from those participating in the pride festival.

 
As most of you are aware the new book Jesus Loves You…This I Know was released at the end  of September. We have been blown away by the response so far, and we’re really excited about what the future holds for this project. That’s why we have some exciting news!
 
My friend and co author Jason Harper and I have decided to run a promotion for THIS WEEK ONLY!  If you purchase the book from Amazon THIS WEEK for $12.23 (retail price: $17.99), we will give you a huge return on your investment.

 Here is what you will receive for buying the book THIS WEEK:

1. A PDF of The Gutter by Craig Gross (all hard copies have been sold out), a $10 value                   

2. 3 FREE Audiobooks! Craig's last books FREE.  The Gutter, Questions You Can’t Ask Your Mama and Starving Jesus, a $35 value

3. The song Jesus Loves Me, MP3 (written to coincide with the book by Aaron Keyes and Ben Smith) 

So for $12.23, you’re getting a value of over $60!

Also, if you buy Jesus Loves You at Amazon on THIS WEEK, we will enter you to win one of three grand prizes.
 
1. A free trip to Las Vegas
2. A $100 credit in the XXXchurch online store
3. A free trip to the Atlanta Pride stop on the Jesus Loves You tour
 
Already have the book? Send it to a friend who needs it, and you’ll still get the freebies!
 
Why are we doing this?
 
First, we want to say thank you. We think this book can have a huge impact in the world, and we want to thank you for helping us get the word out.

Second, Amazon ranks one-day sales very highly in their placement of books on their website, so a huge rush of sales in one day will gain added exposure to the book. Also, when a book ranks highly, it shows up more frequently in recommended readings lists. Bottom line: the book ends up in more people’s hands.
 
To get your freebies and to be entered to win one of the grand prizes, go to Amazon, place your order, write down the order number, and fill out the form here: http://bit.ly/188YT6
 

LINK TO BUY IT IN AMAZON.

Thanks!
Craig Gross and Jason Harper

 Here is what you will receive for buying the book today, October 13:

1. A PDF of The Gutter by Craig Gross (all hard copies have been sold out), a $10 value                   

2. 3 FREE Audiobooks! Craig's last books FREE.  The Gutter, Questions You Can’t Ask Your Mama and Starving Jesus, a $35 value

3. The song Jesus Loves Me, MP3 (written to coincide with the book by Aaron Keyes and Ben Smith) 

So for $12.23, you’re getting a value of over $60!

Also, if you buy Jesus Loves You at Amazon on October 13, we will enter you to win one of three grand prizes.
 
1. A free trip to Las Vegas
2. A $100 credit in the XXXchurch online store
3. A free trip to the Atlanta Pride stop on the Jesus Loves You tour
 
Already have the book? Send it to a friend who needs it, and you’ll still get the freebies!
 
Why are we doing this?
 
First, we want to say thank you. We think this book can have a huge impact in the world, and we want to thank you for helping us get the word out.

Second, Amazon ranks one-day sales very highly in their placement of books on their website, so a huge rush of sales in one day will gain added exposure to the book. Also, when a book ranks highly, it shows up more frequently in recommended readings lists. Bottom line: the book ends up in more people’s hands.
 
To get your freebies and to be entered to win one of the grand prizes, go to Amazon, place your order, write down the order number, and fill out the form here: http://bit.ly/188YT6
 

LINK TO BUY IT IN AMAZON.

Thanks!
Craig Gross and Jason Harper

Hundreds of volunteers have helped make this happen. The house was initially given to the house by someone who had passed away. We pitched in $2,000 to start the work on the house and countless number of other people have given money and hours of hard work to pull this off.

At the church service today, it was standing room only in the service. It looked like it was at least 1,000 people that were in the auditorium for the noon service as the winner was selected.

The winner of the house was Thereatha Baker. Here is part of her story.

Do to the lose of her husband, which was the primary income of the house whole. She can not afford the rent where she is now, and the landlord is selling the house and she has to move at any giving day with no money for first and last months rent. It been a trying time since her husband passing and all bills that do, there's no money to live off of nor to put food in the house. If she pays her rent she has no money left to pay bills or buy food with that being all the money she has for the month to live off of. It been by the grace of god she as made it this far.  

There is still some more work to be done on the house they should be able to move into the house in the next few weeks. New appliances, heater, cabinets, carpet, tile, bathroom fixtures, sinks, bath, paint, walkway are just a few things that were done to this house.

At church 30 people committed to following Jesus as Pastor Carey shared a dynamic message. He talked out of Genesis about the word "Covenant". He assured people that Jesus would always hold through on his part of the agreement. He mentioned that "Jesus loves you before you do what you do because he did what he did."

At the close of the service Pastor Carey asked for people to consider joining Citadel of Faith Covenant Church if they did not have a home church and wanted to get plugged in. About 55 people came forward to join the church after the service.

Around 3pm, we took a tour of the house. We were able to pray over the house and for the moving in of the Baker family. Pastor Carey, Lisa Johanon, Jason Harper and I took a photo of the house on our way out.

DETROIT (WXYZ) - A Detroit family will get a free home thanks to a ministry group that tries to reach the people that some churches frown upon.

"We've always gone with the message that Jesus loves you no matter who you are or what you do," said author Craig Gross.

In fact, it is the theme of Gross's and Jason Harper's book, Jesus Loves You, and their work. The two started Triple X Church and launched it at a porn convention in Las Vegas.

Now in the middle of a six-city tour that stops at a gay pride parade in Atlanta and a prison in northern California, Gross, the former Michigander, has made Detroit one of its stops, buying a home on Hazelwood, then renovating it to give to a family they feel needs it most.

Applications for the home have been pouring in, and the announcement will be made at The Citadel of Faith Covenant Church on Woodward Avenue in Detroit at noon on Sunday. Then at 3:00 p.m., the ribbon cutting will take place at the gift home.

We are very pleased to invite you to the ClickCast Live event for the USC Porn Debate - Ron Jeremy vs. Craig Gross this Wednesday, Oct 7th at 7pm PT / 10pm ET. You'll have a chance to talk to Craig and Ron "real time" about everything from their favorite pizza toppings to Craig's much anticipated new book..."Jesus Loves You...This I Know."

ClickCast is a press junket meets live viral chat on Facebook where YOU ask the questions and view live video of the event. That's right....no middle man between you and the big shots. You can RSVP for the event and invite friends on Facebook by heading over to: http://bit.ly/USCporndebate. Invite your friends...this will be fun.

RSVP and invite friends on Facebook go to >>> http://bit.ly/USCporndebate

WATCHT THE EVENT HERE - http://apps.facebook.com/clickcast/

USC Porn Debate Live Event Schedule
7:00 - 7:30 pm - Backstage Q&A
7:30 - 8:30 pm - Debate
8:30 - 9:30 pm - Open mic and Q&A
9:30 - 10:00 pm - Backstage Q&A
RSVP and invite friends!

Heroes.

Wednesday was made up of chain reaction of moments.  Handing out 400 buffet lunches at The Orleans was incredible.  Days before Fox and CBS gave us some coverage and not knowing what to expect, you can imagine how we were excited to see a line waiting for us.  Despite the casino’s amateur ability in handling the potential big crowds, they had cops waiting at the doors to assure the two pastors didn’t cause any problems.  Frustrated by their eagle eye desire to micro-manage our every move; Craig nearly got arrested for loving on people.  Amazing haters will do anything to disrupt love.  

Towards the end of the buffet give away, I watched how X3 Director of Development and Sin City Bus Driver Steve Rose, captured one of these moments.  As we all stood talking, an elderly man who looked to be in his late 70’s wandered up to the line.  His bright yellow shirt and royal blue hat was hard to miss.  His wrinkled face told a story.  Or maybe it was my imagination what life events had caused his face to look so weathered and worn.  I wondered.  Maybe he was a regular at the casino.  Maybe he was a wanderer.  Regardless, he was alone.  Without hesitation Steven made his way over to the guy and asked him if he was hungry.  Within minutes Steve had him smile.  The conversation had evolved.  Some would have looked at Steve’s love and call it a waste.  Jesus looked at it and called it worship.  As I watched, I leaned over to a few of my friends and asked a rhetorical question, “What if this entire buffet give-away…what if this entire book tour stop was really about this one conversation that Steve is having?” 

Jesus’ love does that.  It takes a moment and makes it a miracle.  Before to much time had passed, the old-timer was thumbing through a Jesus Loves Sin City bible and fully engaged in a completely God-orchestrated conversation about Jesus.  It wasn’t awkward.  It wasn’t obnoxious.  It was Steve showing love in a practical way- giving a hungry old man a voucher for an $8 dollar buffet lunch.  As I watched this miracle in motion, my mind reflected back to the hours, days and months, I spent loving on Willie the Whino. (The Willie the Whino story is the thread that holds the Jesus Loves the Disconnected together in the JLYTIK book).

Steve stood and ushered his new friend to the restaurant entrance.   They exchanged smiles and he walked on in.  Nearly an hour later, Steve’s new friend came wandering out onto the casino floor.  His stomach was full and so was his soul.  With a smile pasted on his face, he looked at Steve and said, "I'm going home and telling my wife that Jesus bought me lunch today."

The old guy felt Jesus in the conversation.  Steve took the time to engage the guy and his physical needs and it open the door to talk about his spiritual need.  His instincts let one lead to the other.  Some try to go witnessing.  It doesn’t work.  It’s contrived.  Armed with Jesus’ unconditional love and unarmed from a pre-conceived agenda, interactions like this build the Kingdom.  In essence, it’s living like Jesus.

Steve Loving On the Old Timer

What would it look like if we abandoned ‘Field Trips of Faith’ where we go witnessing and instead commit ourselves to ‘Witness as We Go?’  To some it may seem to be the same thing, but re-read it.  They are Kingdoms apart.

Love takes time.  It waits.

Next week we will be at USC for the Los Angeles stop on the tour.  The debate with Ron and Craig will be streamed online to Facebook.  You won't want to miss it.

Much hope and more love,

Jason Harper

Woven in the fabric of every human existence is a vein that is filled with a want for more.  Vegas services that need.  Most everything in Vegas hinges on people’s desire to get.  Jesus came to give.  At its core, Vegas and its explosion in growth and size has been rooted in a cycle of getting.   Tourists travel here to hit it big and when the jackpot.  Many families have relocated here to find and get a job to sustain life.  Ironically, nothing is supposed to grow in the dessert.

If there was ever a town in need of Jesus’ love, it is Vegas.  Where many simple want to take, we want to give.  It’s why we created the Jesus Loves You Book tour stop to represent Jesus Loves Gluttons.  It’s our desire to meet people where they are and say, “Hey Vegas, we love you and want you to take a break and have lunch on us.  Sure, it is gimmicky, but then again, its Vegas.  Tomorrow, we will serve 400 people a free buffet lunch at the Orleans Casino.  So many say, “There is no such thing as a free lunch,”  we want to give a free lunch.  When so many are losing, we are setting the stakes to assure they win.  With no strings attached and only a desire to give, people get lunch on us.  We will give away some free books, have some drawings, and give some more.

For details, visit www.freebuffetwednesday.com

Until then,

Craig

Jason 

 On most flights, people are polite and cordial, inquisitive and engaged; and sometimes not.  On this last flight, the person on my right was asking the questions.   I would answer and then the guy on the left would ask the follow up.  In the midst of this two hour journey, I must have fielded 10-12 questions of faith.  They were exploring the value of belief.  As we state in the JLY book, they didn’t have a problem with Jesus, but they were not convinced of Christianity.  The last question I was asked was unanswerable.  “Can you prove God?”

Proof?

I can’t prove God.  To attempt to leads to arguments that usually lack civility.  I can talk about probability, empirical evidence, scripture validity using mathematical probability, archeological data, etc.  But still there is a measure of faith that I have to put my trust in scripture.  I have to exercise the measured statement of “I believe.”

Do you?

If you are engaged in a question or conversation like I was, consider these three thoughts.

1.  I have never met anyone who was argued into a love with God.

2.  It is OK to say, “I don’t know the answer.”  It increases authenticity.

3.  Remember it is a process not a final destination.  We are all still growing in our faith.

Speak life.  Show love.
Much love.

Jason

Doubt comes from a lack of confidence.   The confidence is lacking in those who speak on behalf of God, not in God.  I can’t image living life without a compass.  I can’t imagine climbing with out a map.  I can’t imagine exploring skeptical of my guide.  I know that God is vitally concerned about me and the steps I take throughout the day.  His impending love is for me to prosper.
“I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper…”

How do you see God?  Is He there?  If He is, do you believe that He cares about you?  For the heart of the skeptic to believe, it is a matter of confidence.  Increased confidence comes from investigating the claims of God.  Often those who lack confidence, skeptics, discount the scriptures, yet have never investigated the validity.  Yet love transcends that chasm of doubt and disbelief. 

If you know someone who is in this place, Jesus Loves You This I Know is a plug and play tool that is powerful in describing the all-inclusive love of God.  Because sometimes it is hard to know what to say, offer them a copy of the book.  We help you speak of the love of God with real-life stories of hope.  It will bring confidence in a Creator to everyone who reads it.

Get one for the people who need to hear. 

Until then,

Craig

             BUY NOW

Yesterday at my church, we launched the Jesus Loves You Series.  The first message was geared toward the bitter and the betrayed.  I left moved by the words I heard.  Words that stuck to me were words like peace, amicable, civility, hope, and restoration.  Seated around me were people with different stories.  Some of their pain was known.  Some people’s pain was hidden.  Throughout scripture, stories are told of people who were betrayed and how they responded to it.    Some stayed healthy with hope.  Others responded and were weakened and stayed hurt. 

Think Joseph.

Think Saul.

Think David.

Think Esther.

Think Jesus.

Think you.

How do you respond?  Where does this sit with you?  Is there some one waiting for you to apologize?  Is there some who may have missed it with you?  If so, release it today. 

Consider this.  Find the person who you know and put this book in their hand.  If you can't get it for them, email them or text them and tell them about it.  Link them to Amazon.  It will matter.

Much hope and more love,

Jason Harper

On March 5th two Iranian Christian women, Miss Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad (30), and Miss Maryam Rustampoor (27), were arrested by the Iranian security forces, according to reports recieved by FCNN. Their only crime is that they are committed Christians who follow the teachings of Jesus. They are being unfairly labeled as ‘anti-government activists’, because of the hostility of the government towards practicing Christians.

Their shared apartment was searched and personal belongings confiscated. They were hand-cuffed and first taken to the police and security station 137 in Gysha, west of Tehran for interrogation. Later they were taken to Vozara Detention Centre. Then they were taken to Branch 2 of the National Security Section of the Revolutionary Court, they were sent to the notorious Evin Prison where they are being held without charge.

They have been told they could be freed on a bail of US$400,000. This excessive bail level is unrealistic and is designed to intimidate and make release impossible. The families have subsequently been told on several occasions a judge is not available to discuss the case.

Both women are allowed just a one minute telephone call every day to their immediate families. Both are unwell and in need of Urgent medical attention. During their last call on March 28 Marzieh said that she was suffering from an infection and high fever. She said ‘Iam dying’.

There has been a noted increase in government intimidation of the Christians. Last year there were over 50 known cases of arrests and imprisonment. There were some cases of Torture.

Iranian Christian leaders from around the world are calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Marzieh and Maryam.

We ask world governments to put pressure on Iran to ensure freedom of religion.

Prayers are being offered for their safe release. We ask Christians around the globe to continue to pray.

Yesterday at my church, we launched the Jesus Loves You Series.  The first message was geared toward the bitter and the betrayed.  I left moved by the words I heard.  Words that stuck to me were words like peace, amicable, civility, hope, and restoration.  Seated around me were people with different stories.  Some of their pain was known.  Some people’s pain was hidden.  Throughout scripture, stories are told of people who were betrayed and how they responded to it.    Some stayed healthy with hope.  Others responded and were weakened and stayed hurt. 

Think Joseph.

Think Saul.

Think David.

Think Esther.

Think Jesus.

Think you.

How do you respond?  Where does this sit with you?  Is there some one waiting for you to apologize?  Is there some who may have missed it with you?  If so, release it today. 

Consider this.  Find the person who you know and put this book in their hand.  If you can't get it for them, email them or text them and tell them about it.  Link them to Amazon.  It will matter.

Much hope and more love,

Jason Harper

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Over on the Westboro site, they wrote a blog about their trip to American Idol. Here it is:

We Will Work ‘Til Jesus Comes

What a glorious door the LORD opened for us on Sunday, August 30, 2009, by allowing a small group of His servants to travel to the Sprint Center in Kansas City Missouri.  We traveled up there to picket the jew, fag Adam Lambert who is all about glorifying himself and his “alternate” lifestyle, don’t ya know.  BARF!!  Keep your pants on and your disgusting sexual exploits to yourself.  If you are not going to obey your GOD, at least have the decency to keep your mouth shut about it!!  But, alas, we are not living in those days.  Instead, by the grace of our God we have been brought to this hour in the last days of all to preach to a generation of worthless, ignorant, Bible-dumb people.  And to put the icing on the cake the “pastor” of the X-X-X church was there to witness it.  (And thus the twittering did begin.) Yes, I said X-X-X and church in the same sentence.  These idiots go around pretending that they are Christ-like because they “preach” to the porn stars, strippers, and any other vile creature they decide to take on.  Helllooo!!  The commandment says:

2 Corinthians 6:17  “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” 

But obedience is not their thing.  Obedience is a foreign concept to the people of this day.  From their youth they are taught that there is no need to obey God, because after all, Jesus loves you whoever you are no matter how filthy your life is.  That is the lie that is going to damn the majority of this world to hell – no matter how many books are written on the subject.  The only book that holds any truth on the matter is the one that they neglect to read, nay, the one that sits in the corner collecting pounds of dust.  Kept around only because it in an antique from their grandmother.

When Moses went up into the mount and spoke with God face to face he was given a detailed list of how to build the physical temple.  He then came down from the mount and repeated those words to the wise hearted men and they wrote them down.  The details of that work are enough to make your head spin when you read them.  Those details account for every piece of that work – nothing is left out.  Every curtain, every tenon, every coupling, every ring for the staves to carry the ark, it is all there.  It is easy to wonder why all of that would be written down.  Why would we need to know every detail of that work?  Could it have not been easily written that the wise men built the temple according to the commandments of God and then, call it good?  Well, of course it could have been written that way, but it wasn’t.  There is an easy answer for that.  All of these things are written for this purpose:  1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.  And:  Ro 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

So what are we to learn from this?  I submit two suggestions (I am sure there is more, but here is where I am dwelling at the moment):

1) It is there to magnify this verse:  Ec 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. 

There was no doing this labor without them putting their hand to the job and doing it with everything that they had.  This was a monumental, miraculous work that was put in front of them and they had everything they needed to do the job (given unto them by the hand of their God), including people who loved and feared the LORD and were willing to make that thing happen.  Of course this job would have been completed regardless of the people – they were not needed.  God could have done that work on His own, but He chose those people to do that work and He required.

2) STRICT OBEDIENCE to the standard that He set out before them.  There were no second guesses, no shortcuts, no changes that were to be made based on slothfulness or pride (e.g., it’s all about me and making me look good).  They had to do that work with their might – utilizing every resource given them by the hand of God with diligence, carefulness, and precision.  Pure obedience to the standard set before them.  I imagine it was a glorious sight to behold – watching that labor of love for the King of the place. 

Today we do not have a physical temple, but a spiritual temple.  That does not change the standard.  STRICT OBEDIENCE is required to the commandments of God.  There are no shortcuts, no changes that can be made based on our slothfulness, arrogance or pride.  And like in those times He chose out the people that are set about to do the job.  This work that is set before this little body is not of us.  We did not create it and we did not get here in this place by our might.  He has chosen out those people whom He will have mercy on and he has set the bounds of their habitation and leads them as He sees fit.  Our job in the matter is to obey.  When Joshua led the children of Israel into the battle to take Jericho there were clear rules established prior to the walls falling down.  He set the standard and He required obedience to the standard. The LORD led them to that victory and one person – only one person of thousands - decided that he would not obey that standard set out before them.  It angered God and He did not go with them when they went up to battle against Ai, and would not put His hand to helping them again until they fixed that thing which had been done.  They brought that man out from amongst them and they stoned him to death – him and his household.  (See Joshua Chapter 7 for more details.) 

It is serious business to mess with obedience to your God, and it does not go well for those who will not obey.  How much more serious is it, then, to teach those that are round about you lies and deceit about obedience to your Maker?  Woe unto those men from the X-X-X church.  They will most certainly reap what they have sown.  They refuse to follow the pattern that God delivered to them - those plain and simple standards set forth from the God of eternity.  By his mercy, God has given us to love that pattern.  It is our labor of love to the King of the place.  It is our lot, and it is a glorious one that we have been handed in this life. The yoke is easy and the burden is most certainly light, so with happy hearts and joyous spirits we will work ‘til Jesus comes.

Critique of Jesus Loves You this I know by craig gross and jason harper
By Westboro Baptist Church
 
This “book” is a collection of perverse platitudinous probably-plagiarized ditties designed to cast off the bonds which the good laws and statutes of God impose on the human heart.  The "authors" went into the bowels of this dark-hearted nation, and pulled forth some of the most motley grungy rebellious proud sinners and chronicled their misery.  News flash girls: You live a life utterly contrary to all your Creator has told you to do and – no flippin’ duh – you’re miserable!  This life is vanity; it’s laden with misery; and if you focus all your energies sowing to the flesh, and ignoring the spirit and your duty to God, of course you’ll be miserable.  The only hope for people in that mess – as well as the power-mongering wealthy fancier proud sinners of doomed-america (from the least to the greatest) – is the truth.  Obey God and he will bless you; disobey him and he will curse you, in every way, every day, in this life and after.  Unless you tell your fellow man to obey God and rebuke him for his sin, you hate him.  So – like all the rest of the lying whore false prophets of this nation – of whatever brand of poison – craig and jason hate their fellow man.  They offer this sappy-floppy-pretend-love for one reason only – to make the bucks!
 
These two joel olsteen wannabies (craig and jason) made a lazy lightweight effort to mimic joel’s theology-of-lust-and-greed, in the hopes they’ll cash in on some of his millions.  They rightly perceive this is a generation that wants a submissive cotton candy goddess to serve, one who will let them live in any proud sin and pretend they can go to heaven.  Upon perceiving that there was gold in the hills of this nation’s sinful rebellion, with slack jaws and sparkling-with-idol-worship eyes, they set about to form their own brand of feel-good junk-food theology.  It’s a sugary twist on a high-octane-level-sugar diet.  Bor-ing.
 
Jesus loves his elect, and only his elect.  Those people – called a remnant (some of whom have been alive on this earth since the dawn of creation) – have attributes and descriptors, all found in the Bible.  (That’s the book craig and jason use as a prop similar to how Shirley Phelps-Roper used their dung-digest as a paper-weight.)  The attributes of God’s elect are obedience, meekness, fear of God, and a broken and contrite heart.  Those whom Jesus loves (his joint-heirs in glory) have a courageous testimony before their generation; the whole world knows and hates them.  Their descriptors are poor, needy, widow and fatherless.  Those elegant Bible words weren’t sufficient for the spiritual-slob-fest of craig and jason.  So they made up new words, coming out of their black hearts, in sharp conflict with the Scriptures, appealing to the masses, and sadly for those two lassies – utterly abhorrent to God and the very words that will condemn their souls to everlasting punishment.  Sucks to be craig and jason!  Now into the trash the “book” goes.  (Smile.)

I asked some who I know.  Some said the cost of going was higher than the reward of going.  The “once-churched” I talked to described a list of do’s and don’ts, early start times, cliques, irrelevant teachings, and lack of trust as the reasons they decided to skip out on going to a church.  When I pressed further it came down to trust.  They did not trust that it would be worth their time, energy and effort to attend, yet maintained their value of spirituality. 
The “once-churched” number are in the millions.  Many slipped out the church’s back door and nobody realized they were gone.  No one called.  No one reached out.  It only further reinforced their perceptions.  Bitter and feeling betrayed in their heart, most still wanted to connect with God; just not at the church.  Sad.  These are good people.
What would happen if every church poured over their attender’s list and identified the people who were no longer there?  What if they called, sent a card, letter, or dropped by to say, “We completely missed it.  We are SORRY that we failed you.  We need to get better at what we do.  We don’t expect you to attend here, but please consider finding some place to reconnect?”  What would happen?

It is not about increasing attendance.  It is about being a peace maker to those who are offended, bitter, broken, and betrayed.

If you read this and it described your experience, on behalf of pastoral leadership and clergy, we want to say we are sorry.  If trust has been broken, please forgive the person, pastor, or church community that failed you.  They just missed it and though they have not said it, they miss you.  Try it again.  Try a new place.  Consider connecting again.  It may sooth the soul.

Much hope and more love,

Jason

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I will be teaching this coming Sunday the 6th. Jason Harper will be speaking on September 27th and their pastor Jason Hirsch will be doing the other two Sunday messages in September.

We are also giving away 400 buffet's for FREE BUFFET WEDNESDAY on September 30th.  This is part of the tour for the Jesus Loves the Glutton chapter. Hit up the site and download your free coupone for the 30th on the Free Buffet Wednesday website.

Services at Epic are at 9:30am and 11:15am.

Epic Christian Church
8755 West Warm Springs Road
Las Vegas, Nevada  89148

Love to see you out for this.

From us to you, thank you Haley.
Much love.
Jason

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Often time, the person of Jesus gets distorted.  Through the pen to paper approach, we sought to give the unchurched and once-churched a hopeful look, while challenging believers.  In the early phases of the process, people constantly cautioned us to not try to write to both groups in the same book.  We didn’t listen.  We felt that Jesus’ message is applicable and pastors have to speak to both groups every Sunday so why couldn’t we write to both groups.  Whether or not it worked remains up to you.

Two things you may want to do.  First, purchase the book on Amazon.  Best Seller list are formatted off of the movement of the book on Amazon.  When you purchase it, it moves it in to a place or prominent positioning.  Second, consider using the book as a stocking stuffer or Christmas gift for those you know.  When you get the book, buy one for someone you love who needs to hear a message of hope.  They will find themselves in the pages.  The accompanying DVD gives them videos of the stories in the pages.

Thank you for all your support.  If you have got a copy, post a comment on Amazon.  It is the fastest way to let us know what you think.

Coming to a city near you,

Craig

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