Reflections from a Tractor Cab

Dear WNKJ Family;

Harvest time is always the favorite time of the year for farmers.  I ought to know because I farm for a living.  It is always good to bring in the crop, even when things have been hot and dry, as they have this summer.  Years ago, a friend of mine named David Turk reminded me about the rules of sowing and reaping. Here they are for your consideration:

1. There is no reaping without sowing.   (crops that spring up on their own are usually called weeds)

2. We reap the same thing that has been sown.   (corn begets corn, and generosity begets generosity)

3. You always reap later than you sow.  ( waiting seems to be part of God's plan)

4. You always reap more than you sow.   (faithfulness in small things brings greater things)

5. You reap in proportion to what you sow.   (he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly)

6. We may reap what others have sown.   (one man sows, another waters, but God gives the increase)

Fall is also the time for the WNKJ annual Careathon.  Many of you have sown along with us in past years and we sincerely thank you for your faithfulness.  Many of you are going to be giving for the first time this year, and we thank you now, in advance, for that faithfulness.  Our ministry is supported only by the gifts and prayers of God's people.  We have no government grants or stimulus funds, so please remember us generously as you give and pray.  Our address is 1100 East 18th St., Hopkinsville, Kentucky 42240; and our website, where you can also make a Faith Pledge and a donation, is www.wnkj.org.

 Now for the final rule of sowing and reaping:

If you succeed without suffering, that just means someone else has suffered.   If you suffer without succeeding, that just means someone else will succeed.

God bless you as you join with us to share the gospel in a World that Needs King Jesus.

John Young

 Chairman of the Board of Directors

Pennyrile Christian Community

Care-a-thon 2010 is on the Horizon

Actually, it’s a lot closer than the horizon, although it will be a bit later in the year than usual.  This year’s dates are Thursday – Saturday, October 14 – 16.  For our newer Listening Family members, Care-a-thon time at WNKJ is a time unlike any other.  It is the time we set aside to talk intensely about money - but that's not what makes Care-a-thon unique. 

What does make Care-a-thon unique?  YOU do!

Because WNKJ is personally supported by the gifts of our Listening Family, and only by those gifts, Care-a-thon is very much a large Family Reunion.  There are refreshments; tours of the station; and the chance to see what some of the Family members do at work; phone calls from those who can't make it in person; and the excitement of our Family working together toward a single purpose - spreading the unchanging Gospel of Jesus Christ twenty-four hours every day, seven days every week, all year long, over the air and on the internet.

Because we are entirely dependent on your gifts to stay on the air; because you are THE source our Lord uses to meet WNKJ’s financial obligations, because without your gifts, we would be silent, each year as we approach Care-a-thon, we ask our Listening Family to do three things.   

REFLECT on what WNKJ has meant to you and to those you know - and how different life would be without WNKJ – because that is what would happen without the financial support of our Listening Family.

PRAY and DECIDE how our Lord would have you give to support WNKJ.  Please remember - there are no funds from any source other than God's people to keep WNKJ, our translators and our web site on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

INFORM  us of your decision.  We don’t know what is happening in each of your lives, so we NEVER presume that your past support automatically means future support.  We need you to tell us each year.  You can do it by filling out the enclosed Faith Pledge card and mailing it to us or by going to our web site, www.wnkj.org.  You can make your Faith Pledge there, you can e-mail us, and you can also make donations there via PayPal or credit card.  

We also want to invite you to visit us at WNKJ during Care-a-thon.  We are located at 1100 East 18th Street in Hopkinsville, and we will gladly give directions.  (If you have never been here during a "Jehovah Jireh", you really ought to plan to visit us at least once this Care-a-thon.)  If you can't be here physically, please listen as much as you can; and we are counting on you to pray with us that God will supply our need for the coming year. 

Our phone numbers are: (270) 885-9655 and 886-9655, and we have our toll-free number at 1-877-885-9655.  The last four numbers spell W - N - K - J, because the World Needs King Jesus! 

If you have computer access, you can begin to look for more Care-a-thon information to appear on our web site (www.wnkj.org) soon, and as mentioned earlier, you can also go there to make your Faith Pledge and even make your donations using PayPal or your credit card.  (However, we are not set up to take credit card donations over the phone.)

Be a vocal part of Care-a-thon! 

Again this year we have a way for you to be an active part of Care-a-thon by calling in on a separate number to record a brief testimony of what WNKJ has meant in your life, or to someone close to you.  We’ll be playing these mini-testimonies at various times throughout Care-a-thon, so be sure to listen and tell your friends! 

Now for the instructions:  Simply call our Testimony Line, anytime, day or night, listen to the instructions, and record your testimony.  The number is 270-886-1419. 

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Saturday program change – not our doing!

We didn’t cancel Down Gilead Lane.  The program went out of production earlier this year, which is why you have been hearing “re-runs” this summer; but Down Gilead Lane will cease to be on our schedule at the end of September.  So far we haven’t found a suitable replacement.  We are still looking.

In addition, the Moody Broadcasting Network has discontinued airing children’s programming on their primary network on Saturday mornings; but that will not affect our schedule because they will still make Ranger Bill and Storybook Room (with Uncle Bob and Nature Corner) available to us on their alternate supply systems.  Adventures in Odyssey will also stay with us – we’ll get it directly from the producers instead of via Moody.

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Mgrz msngz

Been musing on forgiveness a bit lately - not just on the joy and relief we experience when we are initially forgiven – whether by God or man, or both – but on what we experience when we begin to realize the fullness, the comprehensiveness of God’s forgiveness.  Part of what I mean by this comprehensiveness is what happens when “the world, the flesh, and the devil” remind us of our past sins – and they do – and we can truly look on them as FORGIVEN SIN, and don’t have to force ourselves to relive our shame, pain, and remorse we felt when we first understood the damage sin does to ourselves, others, and to the glory and love of God.  We can honestly say, “Yes, that’s what I did, or thought, or wished I had done, BUT God gave me REPENTANCE and FORGIVENESS, and now it is no longer a factor in my relationship with Him.”

As they say on those annoying TV ads, “But wait; there’s more”, followed by the promise that if  you call in the next 10 minutes you get two for the price of one, or free shipping, or a bonus CD. 

You see, there’s more to forgiveness than “just” between God and us.  We have the privilege; we have the duty, to forgive others – to set them free from the burden of guilt, even if they don’t know they are carrying it and never seriously considered asking for forgiveness. 

“But wait; there’s still more….”

When we forgive, we also set ourselves free – free from resentment, from that burning feeling when we remember what happened, what was said, what was done or undone.  This doesn’t mean we aren’t  careful  in future dealings, or that we dismiss the reality that trust has to be earned, or that we ignore possible dangers.  It does mean that we can exercise due caution without the baggage of hate, resentment, or fear.  That’s another gift God has for us – freedom, and a part of that peace that passes understanding.

One more, “but wait….”

Something that doesn’t get much notice in the area of forgiving is that it’s fun!   We experience joy and relief with God’s forgiveness of us; but when we forgive others, there’s fun involved.   Think about it.  Think about how much fun it can be to say, “I’m going to forgive that person, whether they like it or not.  They and what they did will no longer have a hold on me; I’m releasing it, and them, to God.  I’m going to experience God’s gift of peace in this matter.”

Now, for the last item for this “Musing” – only those who have come to God through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, can do any of this.  Only Jesus’ followers can experience God’s forgiveness, and only Jesus’ followers can truly forgive others because only followers of Jesus can understand forgiveness because of what God has given through His Son.

There are so many who don’t know Him.  Thank you for helping us spread His promise of forgiveness and eternal life and joy.

The World Needs King Jesus.

With you in the King’s service.

Jim Dozier Adams

How much fun being thankful/forgiven