April 2002
Ministry
Newsletter - Note From Ed - Utah
Report – The Promise
Land
– Shriner Donations
Note From Ed - Dear friends, I
apologize for this very belated newsletter. We have
been swamped with work resulting from our February trip to the Utah Olympics. With only
two off us on staff, it has been difficult to keep up and we been playing catch up for
several months. Please pray for us! Even as we geared up for the outreach, our website
activity seemed to increase exponentially and the 100+ daily e-mails overwhelmed us.
 |
In the middle of all this, Jason did find time to fall in love
to a wonderful, godly young woman. Carol and I are proud to announce Jason’s
engagement to Lori Jones. They will be married on July 27, 2002.
I am also excited
to announce that my oldest son John, is getting married to Karon Mendel on June 8th.
We are blessed to see the Lord’s hand in
bringing two amazing daughters into our family. This summer is going to be a great time of
celebration for the Decker Family! |
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|
I saw some amazing
things in Utah and will give you
more of the details in our Missions Report. I was surprised by the minimal Mormon Church
presence around the city and the venues. They had such a backlash from the world press
when they attempted to make this the Mormon Olympics that they pulled back to only operate
at their visitor center inside the walls of Temple Square. When I was at the
visitor center, there were more tour guides and security personnel than visitors.
One thing
I want to mention, over the years, we have felt such a spirit of oppression over Salt Lake City. It was always
there, a dark spiritual cloud you always felt coming into the valley by car or plane.
During the Olympics, it wasn’t there. It was like breathing pure oxygen. Our outreach
was immensely successful because we didn’t have to battle that spiritual strongman.
That authority of the false prophet was released so that the church could appear as
Christian as their PR claimed. There is a scripture that deals with the LDS doctrine of
God being a man that also fits this situation.
Professing to be
wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God
into an image made like corruptible man-…. Romans 1:22-23 NKJV
I am happy to
inform you that my new Dynamic Dialogue Series booklets are at press and will be completed
by May 1. This powerful series includes my new booklet, Understanding Islam,
we expect that booklet to open a powerful new area of ministry for Saints Alive. Our
reprints of To Moroni With Love and The Question Of Freemasonry
are back by popular demand.
Frankly, we have
been hindered by tight finances in completing the projects because they compete with our
fixed monthly expenses such as the newsletter. We still have a deficit of over $7,000 in
the cost of the Olympics project and printing costs for our new books. We are also hoping
to upgrade our newsletter to a quality 24 page quarterly magazine format, which will cost
$2500 an issue. This means we need 2 things – your support and ministry growth! We would be so grateful for any gift you can send
this month to help us get back on track. Would
you please take a moment to pray for these needs before sending a special gift in today?
We covet your partnership with us.
Your Brother In Christ, Ed Decker |
 |
First, we want to thank all of you who joined with us in
raising the funds for the Bible CD’s that we carried to the Utah Winter Olympics.
This trip was a huge success and you made a tremendous difference as our ministry touched
thousands of lives for Christ. We distributed approximately 25,000+ CD’s to the many
visitors from all over the world who attended the 2002 winter games. What an exciting
experience to see the Word of God sent to the many nations of the world.
It was like old times as Jason and I drove all the way from Seattle to Utah.
We stopped for 2 days in Boise to minister at Capital Christian Center. It was a powerful
ministry as I spoke a fresh word on a zeal for the lost and we prepared a large group of
young people to go with us as Christian Missionaries to Utah.
| On
February 21 –23, we held concerts each night in Park
City
and Salt
Lake City.
The Mountain Vineyard, in Park
City
was packed out each night with crowds up to 1,000. We guestimate our SLC concerts played
to at least 25,000 people each night, who stopped to listen each night. Christafari drew
standing crowds up to 7,000 with their lively reggae sets. One night, we saw four Hispanic
families get saved and estimate approximately 100 people prayed with our team to receive
Christ into their lives during the three nights of concerts. |
|
 |
Jason
helped lead and MC the Christian Concerts every night, where the word was preached in love
and lives were changed. Many people found Jesus and we poured ourselves into the work day
and night for a week straight. Working alongside a number of other groups and Christian
bands, including Christafari, Kaizen, VDOZ, Aero, Buck Enterprises, YWAM, Snowboarders for
Christ and Valley Christian Fellowship. I was touched as these young kids ministered the
love of Christ to their generation. God uses everyone who’s willing to let Him! |
|
Each
day our teams passed out the thousands of CDs and 75,000 free tickets to our "End
Game Party" concerts. Each CD has 45 different language versions of the Bible,
Christian music, digitally recorded gospel message and a web browser. We partnered with
Inthebible.com who produced this amazing evangelistic tool and organized the bands to come
with us. The tickets were so successful that we had to stamp them because scalpers were
selling them for $100 on the streets! |
|
| We
saw the streets filled with the love of Christ and surprisingly had minimal difficulties
from any sort of Mormon influence. In fact, a number of the Boise
missionaries went to Temple
Square
and were given permission to sing one Christian worship song in the North Visitor’s
Center, using guitars and a convenient piano. When
we heard what
was happening, Jason and I ran two long SLC blocks and joined them as they were singing,
“Oh Lord, Let your Holy Spirit come and fill this temple.” It
was an unbelievable experience!! |
 |
 The PROMISED LAND
|
HERE'S
THE BRIEF FACTS ON THE ISRAELI CONFLICT TODAY....
1.
Nationhood and Jerusalem.
Israel
became a nation in 1312 B.C.E., two thousand years before the rise of Islam.
2.
Arab
refugees in Israel
began identifying themselves as part of a Palestinian people in 1967, two decades
after the establishment of the modern State of Israel.
3.
Since
the Jewish conquest in 1272 B.C.E. the Jews have had dominion over the land for one
thousand years with a continuous presence in the land for the past 3,300 years.
4.
The
only Arab dominion
since the conquest in 635 C.E. lasted no more than 22 years.
5.
For over 3,300 years, Jerusalem
has been the Jewish capital. Jerusalem
has never been the capital of any Arab or Muslim entity.
Even
when the Jordanians occupied Jerusalem,
they never sought to make it their capital, and Arab leaders did not come to visit.
6.
Jerusalem
is mentioned over 700 times in Tanach, the Jewish Holy Scriptures. Jerusalem
is not mentioned once in the Koran.
7.
King
David
founded the city of Jerusalem.
Mohammed never came to Jerusalem.
8.
Jews
pray facing Jerusalem.
Muslims pray with their backs toward Jerusalem.
9.
Arab
and Jewish Refugees:
In 1948 the Arab refugees were encouraged to leave Israel
by Arab leaders promising to purge the land
of Jews.
Sixty-eight percent left without ever seeing an Israeli soldier.
10.
The
Jewish refugees were forced to flee from Arab lands due to Arab brutality and persecution.
11.
The
number of Arab refugees
who left Israel
in 1948 is estimated to be around 630,000. The
number of Jewish refugees from Arab lands is estimated to be the same.
12.
Arab
refugees were
INTENTIONALLY not absorbed or
integrated into the Arab lands to which they fled, despite the vast Arab territory.
Out of the 100,000,000 refugees since World War II, theirs is the only refugee group in
the world that has never been absorbed or integrated into their own peoples' lands.
Jewish refugees were completely
absorbed into Israel, a country no larger than the state of New
Jersey.
13.
The
Arab - Israeli Conflict:
The Arabs are represented by eight separate nations, not including the Palestinians. There
is only one Jewish nation. The Arab nations initiated all five wars and lost. Israel
defended itself each time and won.
14.
The
PLO's Charter still calls for the destruction of the State of Israel. Israel
has given the Palestinians most of the West
Bank
land, autonomy under the Palestinian Authority, and has supplied them.
15.
Under
Jordanian rule,
Jewish holy sites were desecrated and the Jews were denied access to places of worship.
Under Israeli rule, all Muslim and Christian sites have been preserved and made accessible
to people of all faiths.
16.
The
UN Record on Israel
and the Arabs: of the 175 Security Council resolutions passed before 1990; there were 97
directed against Israel.
17.
Of
the 690 General Assembly resolutions voted on before 1990, 429 were
directed against Israel.
18.
The
U. N was silent while 58 Jerusalem Synagogues were destroyed by the Jordanians.
19.
The UN was silent while the Jordanians systematically desecrated the ancient Jewish
cemetery on the Mount
of Olives.
20.
The
UN was silent while the Jordanians enforced an apartheid-like policy of preventing Jews
from visiting the Temple
Mount
and the Western Wall.
These are incredible times. We have to ask what our role should be. What will we tell our
grandchildren we did when there was a turning point in Jewish destiny, an opportunity to
make a difference?
*
Ed –
This list was compiled by a Christian university professor.
Jerry
Golden "REPORT" - PO Box 591 Shemesh 99100 Israel http://thegoldenreport.com
Shrine
records shocking
Dear
Ann Landers: That
glowing letter about how much good the Shriners do was only half the story. I believe you
were taken in. The issue is not how much money the Shriners pass on to the hospitals they
support but how much do the temples keep for themselves. The Orlando Sentinel
did a terrific series on this subject recently. I am enclosing part one. It will tell you
all you need to know.--R. L., TIPP
CITY,
OHIO
DEAR TIPP: Thank you
for your letter and part one of the series by the Orlando Sentinel.
John Haile, editor of the Sentinel, sent me part two. I was
distressed by the information contained in that prize-winning story. Shrine refers to
their hospitals as "the soul of the Shrine" and "the reason for
Shrinedom," but the Sentinel cited Internal Revenue Service
records showing that although the Shrine is the richest charity in the nation, it gave its
22 hospitals less than one-third of the gross collected from the public in 1984. The
remainder was spent on food, travel, entertainment, fraternal ceremonies and fund raising.
The Sentinel reported that in 1985 the Shriners kept a whopping
71 percent of the money raised, about $21.7 million. This went to pay for a range of
clubhouse expenses, including the upkeep of private bars, restaurants, and golf courses.
They also used the money to pay for conventions, travel and entertainment for their
880,000 members and again, fund- raising.
The
Shrine's most lucrative source of income are the circuses throughout the country. They
generated about $23 million in 1985, the paper reported. The records show that less than 2
percent, or $346,251, went to the medical care of children. I find this shocking. In 1922
the Shriners established hospitals for burned and crippled children. Today they operate 19
orthopedic hospitals and three burn centers. I want to make it clear that I have received
dozens of letters from readers who have told me they took their children to a Shrine
hospital after a terrible accident, the youngsters received wonderful care and not one
cent was charged. This is an extraordinary testimony and a glowing tribute. The facts
uncovered by the Orlando Sentinel’s investigative reporters
in no way diminish services performed by the Shrine hospitals. The complaint is that a
great deal of the money that people think is being given to help crippled and burned
children never gets there. In all fairness, I want it understood that every penny sent
directly to the hospitals is spent solely to help the children. Thousands of Shriners were
appalled when the Orlando Sentinel made its findings known. They
had no idea as to the financial workings of their fraternity. To their credit, many Shrine
leaders are now demanding that the temples make clear whether fund-raisers benefit the
children or the Shriners themselves. Four cheers for them.
Our
New Dynamic Dialogue Series:
|
ð Question
of Freemasonry: $5/each or 4 for $20
One
of the most popular booklets exposing the deception and duplicity of the Freemasons is now
available in an updated, expanded 4-color version. Learn how Freemasonry got started, What
the original Masonic documents say regarding the Bible, Jesus Christ and Satan. |
|
ð Understanding Islam: $5/each or 4 for $20 NEW
A
powerful, informative and relevant booklet that shed light on the mystery of Islam. Learn
about the faith of Mohammed, the Koran, Jihad, Muslim women and what the bible says about
these teachings. This booklet digs deep into the core ideology and helps you gain
understanding to Arab culture. |
|
ð To Moroni With Love: $5/each or 4 for $20
A
loving, yet straightforward message to the millions mired in the deceit of the Mormon
Church by one the its former members in a startling expose of the cults doctrines. Find
out if someone can be both a Mormon and a true believing Christian. With this exhortation,
Ed Decker implores readers to look deeply into the doctrines and teachings of the LDS
church and determine the heresy in light of the true, unadulterated Bible. He reveals the Mormon theories on God, the Bible,
Jesus Christ, Salvation, Deity and Satan – Shocking material that has caused
countless Mormons to question the church leaders and abandon Mormonism’s false
teachings. |
ð Order
Dynamic Dialogue Series (all 3 booklets) $15
To
give or to order the booklets offered here, you may either print this form
and mail it with your check or credit card information or visit our
secured online bookstore and leave a
donation.
Direct
all orders to:
Saints Alive/Micahtek
8215
South Elm Place
Broken
Arrow, OK 74011
Or you may call in your order or gift at 1-800-861-9888.
Thank you!
Yes Ed, I am
standing with you ! Here is my Best Donation of: $________
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|
(c) 2002 Ed Decker |
