EXCLUSIVE: FORMER PATRIOT MISSILE GUNNER'S FISHING LURE SALUTES TROOPS, CATCHES FISH!

ONE-OF-A-KIND “PATRIOT FISHING LURE” SALES ALSO HELP SUPPORT WOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT

Attention all anglers, sports fishermen and those of us who only throw a line in the water once in a while, for fun. In celebration of America, the United States military and all things patriotic, former Viet Nam US Army gunner Ronnie Gotzon has an offering which is both unique, effective and a win-win for all. Back during Desert Storm, Gotzon (who worked for AT & T- Lucent Technologies at the time) invented a new spinner bait, from precision molds in his home machine shop. Ronnie developed four different types of Patriot Lures where the propeller spins with a spinning missile spring.   

The new lure was a spinner bait that looked like a Patriot Missile. Scud busters

were made from lead, painted red, white and blue Their propellers, body and back spinner spun with paint that did not peel. Ronnie Gotzon now builds these “Scud busters” in many colors, along with his patriotic one. All of this, from a former Patriot missile gunner, is done to honor and support the troops. Each of these “Scudbuster” lures are both collectible and practical and were sold for only $5. They are most likely worth a lot more today, having ben dated and signed by Gotzon as authentication.

The Write Stuff, a supporter of both the United States military and the Wounded Warrior Project local fundraisers, recommends these fishing lures to all fans of fishing and others who desire to win fishing tournaments. These lures are made by a man, Gotzon who was said he “was born to serve God and be as good as can be citizen as any (US Military) serviceman could be. It is up to the ‘Man Upstairs’ (God) Who leads and guides us. I was gifted to invent things. The only difference between me and any other individual is I go after my ideas”.  As a Veteran himself and support of the Project,  Gotzon also says “ we donate 10% (to Wounded Warrior) from our USA Patriot Spinner, our newest and neatest lure (as well as the Scudbuster). Every serviceman and woman would love one if they saw it.

Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) is the Jacksonville, Florida-based which is

ingrained in the consciousness of patriotic Americans to support our wounded servicemen and women, not just in emotional and physical needs, but in being able to cope with everyday life.  They address everything from Combat Stress and Physical Health of veterans of the recent wars to Education and job training. By 2017, over 100,000 veterans will have been served physically, emotionally and economically.

WOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT WEBSITE HERE

Some of the more popular handmade lures by Ronnie Gotzon

PLEASE NOTE: Ronnie Gotzon indicates that he does not pour lead into any products even though he still has four molds for the Scudbuster (which did contain lead). He only makes the spinners now which contain absolutely no lead. Also all his fishing lures are tested and “if I don’t catch at least four or five fish on my lure, I don’t offer it to the public.”

“One of the biggest questions I get is this – ‘if I had $20 to spend which lures do I personally use? I have four or five favorite lures and here they are: The Wasp (gold or silver); The Mealie Worm (gold or silver); The Twin Minnow (with gold and silver blade on the spinner); The Black Widow Spider (all black/red fluorescent bead) and The Butter Worm”

There are several other top selling lures to choose from like the Yellow Jacket and the Bumble Bee. Visit Ronnie Gotzon’s website to view them all. Also please click here to read theprevious article on Ronnie’s story here for pictures of both the fishing luresas well as the exquisite handmade jewelry he has for sale. Some of the jewelryhave even made it into the movies!

ORDER THE PATRIOT FISHING & OTHER LURES HERE

Contact Ronnie Gotzon here for quick ordering information: 

Phone:    610-217-1687 

Email:     GotzonFishingLures@Gmail.com

US Army vet Ronnie Gotzon (r) with wife Joanne and daughters Jenn and Michelle.

Associated Websites:

Actress Jenn Gotzon: www.jenngotzon.com

Fishers of Men Ministry: www.fomntt.com 

WHY JESUS MUST BE YOUR LORD

That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;  for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. 
(Romans 10:9-10)
There is a HUGE and severely important reason why the majority of western (and mostly North American) Christians do not live in victory, but fear and trembling. The reason actually revolves around the Lordship of Jesus Christ. To fully flesh out this in thesis form, it could take a couple volumes of books but the matter really boils down to some simple truths. 

For a century or more, a church service or sermon would end by the preacher asking variations of the following: "would you like to ask Jesus into your....fill in the blank (heart, life, mind, soul)". Another modus operandi is to say ask folks to come forward "if you feel the Lord tugging you". That one is a two edged sword. A long time ago in my early walk, I did go forward - not to be saved, but to give a man a piece of paper with my sins written down, so he could nail it to the Cross in an act of repentance. All of these methods revolve around one thing - "ASKING JESUS TO BE YOUR SAVIOR"...or pick your words: "trusting Him" or "giving your life to Christ as Savior".

Very rarely you will see, hear or know a preacher/evangelist tell you that Jesus MUST be the LORD of one's life. In my opinion, and those of us who are maligned as "Lordship" people, their approach is severely lacking in doctrinal authenticity and could lead to many a false conversion. Nowhere in Scripture does the Bible prescribe that a sinner ask "Jesus to be His Savior". Everywhere, we see the word "LORD"...and the verse above from Romans 10:9 is absolute proof!

In fact that first phrase of Romans 10:9 is proof of His Lordship! It underlines what Christ Himself says in Mark 1:15 - "Repent and believe the Gospel". In Romans 10:9, there is no "as" in the original so the text really is "of you confess with your mouth Jesus Lord" - that is acknowledging, agreeing, confession and proclamation that Jesus is Lord...and the belief comes from this declaration of Faith.

What really sealed the deal for me is this is Romans 14: "For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living." Now, this is not a future event we shall bow the knew to Christ as Lord THEN. This has already happened! He is LORD NOW! Thus, He MUST be LORD of your life and mine NOW, not then. This all comes down to commitment, obedience and surrender.

What am I saying - that a person who does not accept Christ as Lord of their lives is unsaved? First of all, that is only going part of the way. To be fully a child of God, in the realm of the eternal and to have received the blessings of eternal life, one's sins have to be forgiven. It is not works to ask forgiveness for your sins and THEN accept the free Grace that cometh our way to enable the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord AND Savior of the world and us. The desire to change, have a change of heart when we come to the end of ourselves and the choice is stark before us THAT is the point where He will enable us to seek Him out, make peace through Him and use that Godly sorrow which Holy Spirit has put there in our spiritual heart, to leadeth us to repentance.

Here is where the full measure of Grace begins as we see the unpleasant and unsavory people we are... in the Nostrils of God... the kind of sinner we are and cry out "God, Father, Jesus, please forgive me!" When I was called by the Lord unto salvation, no one witnessed to me or had me repeat a mindless prayer. I knew fully what I was doing and made a conscious choice. Even so, it was only when I wrote my current (at the time) sins down and made an effort to have then nailed to a Cross that I really felt FREE and under the Lordship of Christ. Since that day, Catie bar the door. I am a seminary dropout with only a Bible diploma, via mail study, from Liberty University. It is the Lordship of Jesus Christ, total surrender to the leading and teaching of His Powerful Holy Spirit, my best Friend and the Father's Grace and love, which keepeth me daily.

Friends, this is the only way to have the peace that passeth all understanding. Is Jesus Christ the Savior, Messiah and the Anointed One? Yes, He is. But for that to truly mean something, He MUST be Lord of your life and mine, after rejuvenation and the washing away of all iniquity. Think on these things, obey Him and He shall lead thee unto the path of all truth! Amen.

WORDS OF PEACE....

At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them.  (17) But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion’s mouth.  (18)The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:16-18)

Sometimes even the best of us, the ones whom people think have it all put together, can feel beat down, press upon, disrespected and just plain mistreated. You saw it back in the 1970's when members of the United States Armed Forces returned from a pointless war started by politicians and were spat upon. You see it now with the people of God persecuted in subtle ways in North America and Europe and in typical barbaric ways in the Middle East and Asia. 

Here (in the passage above) we have the great Apostle Paul himself. He is the only man ever personally taught by the Risen Christ Himself in the deserts of Arabia, and yet, there were Christians in Rome and elsewhere just laying into him. They weren't there when he lay in the filthy Roman dungeons for the sake of Christ or even at the end of his life here in 2 Timothy 4, he sat chained to a Roman guard 24 hours a day!. No wonder he said in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 "afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed".

Back then, it was the persecutors of the church doing that to him but at the end of his life, we see many (so-called followers of Christ) deserting him in his final days. But guess who stood with him. 
Guess who had his back. 
Guess who will always be for you and I. 
Guess who will never leave nor forsake us. 

When you're done and troubled and feel like alone in a crowded room and everyone is against you, look to 2 Timothy 4:17a:
- The Lord will stand with you. The original meaning of "the Lord stood with me" is more powerful than any English translation. God will be present, stand closer than a brother and will make His Holy Presence known to you, if you will just let Him.
- The Lord will strengthen you. This word "strengthen" has proactive connotations and follow the Truth that He is present right alongside and in your spirit as well. This is important because God can only empower His own - those who are born-again into the family of Christ. This empowering is beyond description, as you and I will be able to persevere through the most horrid evil and emerge victorious - in His Strength.

The next step in the process of being oppressed, spiritually, emotionally and even physically can be found in verse 2 Timothy 4:17b and 18 above:
- He RESCUES us! The original meaning is "He snatches us out of the jaws of the enemy and draws us unto Himself"! Can you dig that! Yeah though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of death....the shadow of the evil one and his agents here on earth mean nothing to the King! He sits in the heavens and scoffs, He laughs at them! He Who hung the earth on footings we cannot see and giveth life and breath which we cannot create in a laboratory, He is faithful and true to deliver us from all evil....and He says so in verse 18.
- He rescues us from every "evil deed". Today, with the sons of desert in their evil persecuting God's people, it does not appear that way, does it. But it is. Even with the acts of the follows of a false religion, God is drawing His true saints to Him and while we may not see it now, the fallen of the Faith's rewards will be a lot greater in Heaven, than any over-paid preacher in America, who sat in his comfortable mansion and said not a word, when the saints were persecuted for the Name of Jesus Christ. 

The thing is nothing can come near us, unless we are being refined by fire for a greater purpose. These times of spiritual battle and woe will fortify us in the inner man if we just have the right perspective, if we just know the Scriptures and if we continue living surrendered lives under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. 

WEEDLESS SHAD DART INVENTOR FROM BETHLEHEM (STEEL TOWN) SHINES - RONNIE GOTZON, VIETNAM VET, FISHING LURE KING.

AN INSPIRING STORY OF REDEMPTION, FAMILY, FAITH

U.S. Army Veteran Ronnie Gotzon with his
 inventions at one of his many shows  

For RONNIE GOTZON, a Vietnam era veteran and his very close 18 year old cousin Tommy Becker it was a day that would change both their lives and subsequently affect their families forever. Then tragedy struck and life was never the same.
Now, years later, Ronnie has never gotten over the death of his friend (his close cousin) for 46 years. He has carried this guilt for all these years because his unit went, his friend went, his cousin went and he was passed over to go to Vietnam. He could not speak of the loss of his unit, friends and cousin for all these years. He would just break down and get all choked up. He ended up in a hospital in the spring of 2015 because of all of this. At the hospital one of the nurses helped him get through all of this. She said you were spared because God needed you to share this story. This has helped him so much he doesn’t break down as much telling his story. 

My friend and fellow minister US Marine Corps Captain John S. experienced the same guilt when he felt he should have been part of the huge contingent called up to Beirut in 1983, where we lost 241 servicemen in a horrific attack on October 23, 1983. Marine John S. later became a chopper pilot during the infamous Blackhawk down incident in Somalia, and once told me he tried everything he could to get himself in extreme danger as, the guilt (from Beirut), being so overbearing. John went on to be led to Christ by a little African pastor in Somalia, and is now also a pastor.

Ronnie went on to build a family of three, two girls and one boy. Everyone lives in Pennsylvania and has prosperous positions. Marcus is an world wide distributor selling and opening many franchises of fine eye glass wear. Jennifer* is an Actress from LA. (www.jenngotzon.com) Michelle is a model and has tried out for the Philadelphia Eagles cheerleader’s. Jennifer and Michelle Gotzon are now models on the main packaging for GotzonGetzit “Hooked 2 You 

Ronnie with his girls Jenn and Michelle
 (Father's Day 2015)

Earrings.”line and fishing lures.  Ronnie’s life  still continues to be productive. He said, "One can be productive but your soul may not be at peace and could continually haunt you everyday. Unless one has served in the service and lost a family member or fellow soldier friends, there is no way to fully understand what a active or non active soldier would feel".  Like my Marine corps brother above, the overwhelming sense of “ it should have been me” overtook Ronnie Gotzon, almost to the point where it seemed like he often thinks not to live anymore from the guilt.
Ronnie drove that point home in a wide-ranging interview recently. He said “we really don’t know (the physical pain is, the horror, the knowing etc.) of getting shot at or getting shot....or what it’s like to see a buddy get killed or wounded. We don’t really know what these guys go through losing their fellow soldiers to snipers or (booby-trapped) explosives or being in a true firefight knowing you could be killed or hurt very badly ...we have no idea!”

Patriotic and other lures are tournament hits!

The Veterans Administration is famous for getting a lot of these past and current military personnel to psychologists and psychiatrists for “professional assessment and treatment” most of which never works. Pastoral psychiatrist Keith Meador is different in his approach to dealing with this sort of “it should have been me” sort of guilt. In the program he runs at the Durham, N.C. VA Medical Center, he said that vets biggest step toward healing is to be honest and say “I am suffering”**.

Ronnie over all those years suffered in silence, at times mentioning this to others. Daily thinking of his other troopers and his cousin who are MIA or who were KIA. Only service men and woman and their families would truly understand the honest feelings a serviceman and woman can feel. On the surface, all seemed well with the Northampton Pennsylvania man, but he suffered in silence all   these years. He was close to what many call it now “ the dark night of the soul” today.

Ronnie worked as an operating engineer for Lucent Technologies for 30 years as he    continued to manufacture Shad Darts and only two spinners in the land where the Bethlehem Steel defined an era, in that part of Pennsylvania. Jenn Gotzon said "my dad has many skills which God blessed him with.  He likes to save money fixing things around his house because he was blessed with talents that he does not have to pay anyone to do that job. I’m so proud of him and his skills. My dad can cook a meal,  landscape the pool area from scatch, take a transmission out from an engine and be a #1 encourager to his family. I’m so proud of him and his skills.  He tells me he will need to do this or that and minutes later it is already done.  He waste no time getting his ideas done. One day he had an idea for a fishing lure. I watched him create the lure, go upstairs and create the advertising, the packaging and within one hour he was off to the post office to mail an order."

All Gotzon Getzit lures are handmade in the USA

The Shad fish is a popular game fish which swims up most of the eastern rivers after it leaves the ocean to spawn. When fishing for them back in 1984 the fisherman would use a dart called a Shad Dart. Ronnie has a machine shop in which he made 29 different mold styles of Shad darts with every color possible out there for every fisherman. His biggest creation was the Weedless shad dart. Ronnie applied for the Guinness Book of Records in 1992 with his 200 pound shad dart and his tiniest shad dart of 5 grams with a number 28 fly hook.

Even though the fisherman made fun of him back then and even today because there were no weeds in the river, he knew that this guard would save your dart from getting caught, he exploded from this into building and inventing 60 different lures. The smallest being a Lady Bug lure to the biggest the Striper Flutter Spinner Lure. He sells to stores and does shows weekly. Today after the plant he worked at closed, he continues manufacturing lures and selling all over at every show or possible store. He even has a store in Alaska which took a order of Spinners and Weedless Shad Darts.

  

GotzonGetzit lure and earring manufacturing is done in Pa. His products are in

some movies and his daughter Jenn who is an actress has made contact with

Duck Dynasty were he sent 35 pairs of earring and 20 different lures for

Jenn wearing GotzonGetzit "Hooked 2 You"
 pearl earrings in one of her recent movies

evaluation. Jo-Ann his wife is the accountant for the business. She has the job of all the financial work and is the head of the packaging division. If you feel comfortable and would like to see the newest American made fishing lures and some earrings, Visit his website here to view and order these new beautiful fishing lures and earring’s here at www.Gotzonfishinglures.com

However, what Ronnie, Jo-Ann, Jenn, Michelle and Marcus are really pleased about is his Newest lure for the Troopers (SERVICEMAN OR SERVICE WOMAN). He made a spinner in honor of all the service people who served or did serve our country. He calls this new lure the USA PATRIOT SPINNER. Back during Desert Storm, more than 20 years ago he also invented another lure. He built all the molds for this new lure in his machine shop to honor our troopers. He called this lure the Patriot Scud Buster. A missile spinner bait which looked like the Patriot missile which shot the Scud out of the skies. The propellers spun, the body spun the back clevis spinner spun. This lure would peal line off reels and not get tangled. He made them red, white and blue. He then made them in all colors.

When His USA Patriot Spinners are sold, GOTZONGETZIT LURES DONATE 10% TO THE WOUNDED VETERANS ASSOCIATION. He and his family feels so good when a fellow soldier or customer purchases these products so he could donate and help others.    This OUTSTANDING AND UNIQUE BUSINESS, ALL AMERICAN MADE, ONE AT A TIME custom fishing lures or earrings with the highest quality still hid all the pain and “survivors guilt” Psychologist describe this Survivors Guilt as a response typical to those who work in small groups  (for instance (basic training/boot camp) and then go into combat or other similar environments. When one loses a member a small group unit like this depression can stay with the survivor for a lifetime… if not dealt with. Like everything in life, spiritual healing from creator God is the only answer.

Michelle Gotzon (right) and  Jenn
with new line of earrings 

What happened with Ronnie Gotzon is that, it dealt with. By October 2014, he could not deal with this inner turmoil anymore. Even his wonderful family life was going through some rough waters. "It took direct pro-active intervention from his wife, his family, a family friend's recovery pastor David, Jenn's power prayer circle and the direct Hand of God to put an end to this, once and for all." Listening to Jenn talk about this is stunning as the epiphany from this life-changing event last Fall, really broke the dam of tears, fears and all the years.

“That Thanksgiving was the best ever”, said Jenn Gotzon. “I felt as if I got my dad back…and our home has never been better. I have never seen my mom and dad so happy, full of joy and looking forward to the future!” A complete change of healing direction among members of the US Military from the Viet Nam era to now is a very rare thing. The main reason is the treatment, for the most part, leaves out the One Who can really heal – the Lord Jesus Christ.

Speaking with and listening to Ronnie Gotzon is to listen to a man reborn with a new mission in life. We spoke of now using his fishing business and all his shows to converse with, assist and even minister to fellow veterans. With the influx of Afghan and Iraq US veterans returning with PTSD, survivor’s guilt and trauma, it will not be too difficult to find a US military vet from 26-76 years old, in any part of the United States.

“God gave me new lease on life, so maybe I can help somebody else”, he said. “Veteran speaking to veteran has a lot of credibility and….you know what? From now on, instead of just asking a fellow soldier “how are you doing” ….which is the usual with its automatic response (incorrect or not), I am going to start asking them: ‘how are you REALLY doing?’ as a way to start talking with them about their experiences and how we can help…..I think this is what I am going to do.

“I will also tell them that God (kept me around) and gave me a new purpose in life so I can help someone else. My goal is to make them feel comfortable enough to share and not create more pain and guilt.” I mentioned to him that more and more US military personnel coming back from the wars which began with the Iraq invasion in 2003, are committing suicide. I asked Ronnie Gotzon if he had any advice for helping soldiers cope with all the PTSD, Survivor’s guilt and this alarming growth in young veterans suicides. He said “I would tell them to think about what you’re going to do….and the pain and guilt. you will cause your family. We can’t tell these guys NOT to do something because we cannot understand what they are going through.

“What I would like to do is speak with some of them, one and one in a room for one, maybe two days. At first, there would be no talking until they are ready to open up and then, I can share with them and (show) what God has done in my life.“ said Ronnie Gotzon. His daughter Jenn agrees. She has just begun a new ministry to take comfort, joy and the saving Truth of God, through Christ to many. But her dad, the happy fishing lure warrior – Ronnie Gotzon – still has miles to go, and promises to keep.

Whether it is Father’s Day, The Fourth of July, Veterans’ Day or Thanksgiving Day, we still have men and women in uniform who need a loving listening and friendly ear…who still need to hear that life is still full of possibility and joy…who still need to be shown they matter and their families love them…who still need to know that Jesus loves them and wants to give them an abundant life, on earth and in eternity…who still need us to pray for them – without ceasing. This is the takeaway from this great Viet Nam veteran and father, Ronnie Gotzon. It is a testimony that new phases in life and within reach, even at age 65.

Gotzon-Getzit Fishing Lures & Sportsman Jewelry 

www.GotzonFishingLures.com

Telephone: 610-217-1687  
Email: GotzonGetzitLures@gmail.com
*(Jennifer is the well-known and well-loved Christian movie actress Jenn Gotzon whose career took off after her role as Tricia Cox (President Nixon’s daughter) in Ron Howard’s Academy award nominated “Frost/Nixon) in 2009. Jenn is in huge demand for several current and future films, but is well known for her roles in God’s Country, Doonby and the upcoming sequel GOD’s NOT DEAD 2.) 

**Source: *http://aeon.co/magazine/psychology/how-do-soldiers-live-with-their-guilt/

MORE EARRINGS TO CHOOSE FROM HERE:

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EXQUISITE & AMERICAN MADE!

THY WILL BE DONE: PRAYER- "BE PRACTICAL"

PRACTICAL LESSONS FROM NEHEMIAH'S PRAYER

I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 I said, “I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and loving-kindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, 6 let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father’s house have sinned. 

7 We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. 

8 Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; 9 but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to dwell.’ 

10 They are Your servants and Your people whom You redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand. 11 O Lord, I beseech You, may Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and the prayer of Your servants who delight to revere Your name, and make Your servant successful today and grant him compassion before this man.”(Nehemiah 1:4-11)

There are so many great prayers in the Bible, they can fill many books and sermons about their content, meaning and message. One of the greatest leaders and men of God of all time, is Nehemiah, the first Governor of the Judean district (where Jerusalem was) after the Babylonian exile. Nehemiah was chosen by God to rebuild the city after the remnant of the Jewish people had withstood 70 years in exile, in pagan Babylon. As Nehemiah began to rebuild the wall, he faced a lot of opposition, taunts and real enemies from people like Sanballat, Tobiah and their Arab friend. Still Nehemiah and the faithful remnant stayed focus on rebuilding their portion of the wall (read the rest of the Book of Nehemiah), while keeping a vigilant eye open for danger. This is a great example for God's people for all time about practical living in the face of evil while persevering.

This entire prayer of Nehemiah's, to the Lord (see verses 4-11 above) stand out as one of the most powerful in all Scriptures, as the Lord not only granted victory but did it in a spectacular way.  So what was it about this was so powerful that the Lord my God responded with overwhelming victorious response. Let us briefly look at how Nehemiah wasted no time or word and was both practical and proactive in his methodology of praying.

Verse 4: "I was fasting and praying..." -  While some Christians do not fast or even believe in fasting, I can testify to the fact that an intentional fast signifies a willing heart open to hearing from heaven. Fasting sharpens the senses, and especially the spiritual senses as our hearts are more in tune with the Holy Spirit Who is our guarantor that God will hear our prayers. In dangerous times, the practical thing to do is to pray like Nehemiah - in submission, and temporarily depriving ourselves of the things of this world.

Verse 5: “I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God...". Practical praying gets to the Point by acknowledging openly and truthfully, the Sovereign Power of God - His Might, His Majesty and His Mind Which attends the affairs of mankind. He responds any way He wishes, because He is sovereign over all.

Verse 6: "let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant..." Practical praying is pro-active in immediately asking the Father for His full attention to your petition, problem or issue. Notice how, after you read the entire verse above, after Nehemiah asked the Lord's full focus on the matter at hand, Nehemiah went on not just to confess the sins of the people but HIS OWN SINS. In verse 5, the Judean Governor praises and acknowledges the Sovereignty of God, and in verse 6, the petition and confession begins. This is our cue to lay are our souls bare before Him. Every hidden sin must be confessed before God and repentance must begin.

Verse 7: the confession and repenting of sins continues and Nehemiah uses the Plumb Line of Scripture to show just how horrible the departure from God's statutes was. We are in the same boat. Nothing in modern life matches up to Scripture and almost everything in life today, violates the Word of God. The road to restoration continues down the path of repentance.

Verses 8 and 9: "Remember the word..." Here Nehemiah "reminds" the Lord what He said He would do to His people if they strayed and while He disciplines, He is divinely merciful and loving like the Father in the story of the Prodigal Son. Practical praying for a solution is first to KNOW the promises and proclamation of God and secondly, how to apply them appropriately and recall these promises, WITH GREAT AWE AND RESPECT - back to Him! We can say something like "Heavenly Father, remember when You said "If Your people return to Your Word, obey Your commandments and statutes You will hear from Heaven, and if Your people who are called by Your Name....Lord I long to follow You more intentionally and walk in ALL Your Ways, please hear my prayer as I stand on Your Promise to hear from Heaven and heal....."

Verses 10 and 11: Notice that Nehemiah, in essence summarizes, presents and then yields to the Lord with expectation in the positive result. He is actually practical, concise and given the fact that the Holy Spirit included this short prayer in Scripture. Some of the most practical (and effective) prayers in Biblical history have been short, to the point and sweet. When Peter started walking on water towards Jesus, than took his eyes of the Lord and started to sink, he did not pull out his book of prayer from the Christian bookstore and launch into eloquent speech. Peter simply cried out "LORD, SAVE ME"...and He did! Here Nehemiah summarized effective in Verse 11 "I beseech thee"...."may Your Ear be attentive"....and I "revere Your Name"...so "make Your servant successful and grant Him compassion"

That is it! With this in mind, in spite of obstacles, in spite of serious spiritual attack, with this prayer as the foundation, Nehemiah led his people to a victorious conclusion. They were buffeted by Ezra the Scribe reading from the Word of God for hours, aloud, to ALL the people.  The lesson for us is this: be practical, be fully prayed up, be clear and be buffeted by the Word of God.

THY WILL BE DONE: PRAYER - "BE POSITIVE"

God loves the Christian who appears to have swallowed a dozen lemons as much as He loves the Joyful happy warrior who approaches the Throne enthusiastically, day after day!  The former’s approach to prayer is often filled with fear and trepidation to the point where the prayer life is stunted,  fellowship stymied and active relationship with the Father, stayed. The joyful happy warrior however sees his/her waking up in the morning as an opportunity to jump at, in order to meet and greet the Lord daily!

Both conditions define Christians who pursue and those who pout. Who is God more prone to respond to? Both, because He looks at the heart and the request which the Holy Spirit reconfigures, according to Scripture. The edge that the joyful person has is abundance….joy unspeakable, joy unfathomable…and why? Because the Joy of the Lord is your Strength (Nehemiah 8:10b). The latter is the domain of the praying Christian who approaches our Maker with faith, gratitude, humility, love and respect. In other words, a combination of all of these attributes and a willingness to be in His Presence in proactive intercession brings forth fruit and fuel which are both priceless and without comparison. A positive attitude in prayer becomes the Christian as it simply glows off the countenance!  

Consider this: Moses’ brother Aaron was the first official High Priest of the Faith (Melchizedek is the first ever on earth). Aaron’s famous Aaron blessing is direct from God and the portion which pertains here is  “The Lord bless you and keep you…..the Lord make His Face to shine upon you, and give you shalom (peace): Numbers 6:26. There is no more powerfully positive blessing and prayer than this. You can’t teach “positive” we just have to come to a full realization of how great a salvation we have, what that salvation cost Jesus Christ and how incredibly blessed we are to the point that we cannot help but fall at His Feet and even at the mention of His Name. There are many who reject the Lordship of Jesus Christ and simply call Him Savior. Savior, He is. However, if Jesus is NOT the Lord of your life, then something/somebody else is and there is no way there can be a complete relationship with God.

As always, Scripture is our road map. How we pray and stay positive is to start from the foundational truths of the Word, remain in the Word, pray the Word and thereby become fully reliant on the Word.  There is something to acknowledging and praising God in prayer as soon as you set yourself to pray in His Holy Name. “Bless the Lord oh my soul, all that is within me, bless His Holy Name” (Psalm 103:1) Think of the power that underlies this statement which the Holy Spirit placed there for our instruction!

Let us begin to work from the very heart of this verse for a minute, which is “all that is within me” (Psalm 103:1a). This is pro-active sacrificial worship straight from the very depths of who we, as 100% committed followers of Christ, is foundational in having a positive attitude of prayer. When you and I approach the Lord, with expectation and when you approach Abba Father with total surrender, you and I are operating under the Scriptural Definition of Faith. This is right out of Hebrews 11:1 “Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for (expectation), the evidence of things not seen”!

Now about this “evidence” – those who are saved, redeemed, rejuvenated, born-again – we HAVE the evidence! He is the Holy Spirit! He is the SAME, the VERY SAME Holy Spirit Who raised Christ from the dead. He, Holy Spirit, IS the evidence! If this is not understand, we have more work to do to teach Him. So back to Psalm 103:a “ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME”? Well, all that is within you and I - is the Holy Spirit! 

With that in mind, how can we NOT be positive in our Prayer Life?! Impossible. The equation is simple: Holy Spirit (the Evidence within) and the Expectation equals dynamic fuel. This powers us to the state of being positive in prayer!

Next: "Be Practical"

THY WILL BE DONE: PRAYER - "BE PERSISTENT"

If you look up the definition of the word “persistent” in the great Webster’s Dictionary, the word “relentless” stands out boldly. A classic version of this same dictionary, before language and culture got as corrupt and out of sync with reality and God, as today, has a significant definition for those who seek to pursue the Heart of God. The man or woman who fights life’s battles on his/her knees is to be admired and as a result immediately stands out among the ordinary.  To wit, the 1913 Webster’s defines Persistent, in relation to such a person, as one who “remains beyond the period when parts of the same kind sometimes fall off!!” This is actually the biological definition of the word, but describes what we are studying here, perfectly!

What this says, in essence is the persistent prayer warrior is one who presses on, when others simply give up because they think they are not getting the response from God they seek. We all have matters before the Lord, from the moment we were aware of His presence in our lives, before He called us through the process of rejuvenation and salvation, where prayers are either never answered (human perception) or the matter is under consideration (divine perception).

Jesus Himself showed us the way to perseverance in prayer in Luke 18:1-5 “Then He spoke a parable to them that men always ought to pray and not lost heart. Saying ”There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a certain widow in that city; and she came to him saying, ‘get justice for me from my adversary’. (The unjust judge) would not for a while; but afterward he said to himself, ‘though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her CONTINUAL COMING she weary me’.” (Emphasis mine).

This incredible teaching by the Lord in the passage above, followed by the analogy or anecdotal evidence of the "unjust judge" is all we need to persist in prayer. Let us briefly examine what Jesus said here: "He spoke.....that men.... always ought to pray and not lost heart (verse 1)
Consider this:
Jesus spoke- Now this is the very SAME voice which SPOKE the world into existence, "in the beginning" of time, as we know it! Think of what power the Voice, Which sounds like Niagara Falls, actually has! He Who spoke us into existence.... He Who parted the Red Sea....He Whose Voice called Lazarus from the dead....it is He Who is telling us HOW we are supposed to pray! Earlier on, the Voice of God also "strongly recommends", in the Sermon on the Mount, that we both pray and fast. This is NOT Old Testament, so LISTEN TO HIM!

So we have the underlying directive from the Greatest Authority of the World - the Voice of Jesus (re: Jesus spoke) and He tells us we "always ought to pray"! The word "ought" here is originally written "dei". This strong word means more than "you should....or you REALLY ought to"! What Jesus is saying here is "it behooves you to so do, and in fact, it is more than NECESSARY for you to press on and then press in, because you know what, you really MUST...." All of this is wrapped up in this one word!

Then finally, the Voice, after saying it is necessary to pray for (or offer prayers about), directs that we should NOT lose heart. The original language here, which is key to understanding Truth, is "ekkakeó". Jesus is saying in common vernacular "come on, man, are you going to give up this easy? Are you going to fall away too? I expect one of My children, My sons and daughters, My prayer warriors, My men and women of God to fight all the time, in all circumstances, in all manner of ways on their knees!"

Jesus knows He can answer any prayer and correct every wrong immediately, if He wanted to, but just like the woman who had the blood issue, He allowed her to SEEK HIM OUT, THEN touch the priestly tassels on His garment so she could be healed. This is the only way humans can really appreciate how great a Salvation we have and how much God really loves us and wants to help us! We do all of this praying and not getting weary or "losing heart" or otherwise throwing in the towel like most modern Christians - we do this ALL on our knees. We are the only people in Creation ever, who are strongest when we are weak, meek and seek on our knees!

In these few words from the Creator of the Universe (Colossians 1:13-21) we see the exhortation and the example of persistent prayer. So when things are not going our way, things which affect us deeply, personally and even professionally, we stay focused on Him, we fight with Him and we finish the course on our knees before Him. The key thing is "we stay", we persist, we never lose heart and never weary in doing good, or speaking with the One Who is forever Good, True and Holy! If He answers differently  than we expect, well then, it is for our own good. 

Be persistent! Stand out as a warrior on your knees, staying there, while everyone around is giving up and walking away. Be strong and courageous, for the Lord thy God, is with us. Amen.

Next: "Be Positive"

WORLDWIDE PRESS RELEASE - BARAK TV RENAMED "UNSHACKLED TV"

Illinois, USA- June 2015- 

Dr. Tim Henderson,
CEO UNSHACKLED TV

"Barak TV" announces organizational changes and growth to better align with the explosive growth the Judeo-Christian Network has experienced.  CEO of barak, Dr. Tim Henderson, was quoted as saying “barak TV is proud of the content being aired and the top Christian Talent and Artists that have decided to partner with barak TV in offering entertaining, good and solid Judeo-Christian broadcasting via its website and ROKU channel. 

"The growth has been dynamic and as the Network continues to reach people in the global arena thousands of confessions of faith have been received along with reports of church growth as the Network exalts Jesus and professes the Word of God as 100% correct, inerrant and infallible. I am delighted to announce that following extensive consumer tests and a 98% approval rating barak TV has a new name. 

"In order to continue and enter more global markets as the Network continues its growth the new name is now UNSHACKLED TV. During the next couple weeks the only difference to our viewing audience is that mediums they utilize to view Unshackled TV will have a name change. Additionally, as the on-demand is the source our viewers and consumers have clearly communicated they view Unshackled TV enhancements are being made to the on-demand and our outlets and vehicles are expanding. So look for great changes to our ROKU channel, our website and announcements of other mediums to watch Unshackled TV. “Unshackled” features Christian movies, cartoons, Outstanding Church sermons and Worship Services and top-rated shows and its program schedule is rapidly increasing to meet the Judeo-Christian audience demands. Unshackled TV is already a global sensation. (New UNSHACKLED TV website coming soon).

PLEASE NOTE:

PLUMBLINE REMAINS ON "UNSHACKLED TV" FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE... thank you, Bernie Lutchman

"Unshackled is pleased to announce the following additions to its growing weekly list of Churches that have signed agreements and will be airing on Unshackled TV. From Hanover Park, IL, Evangel Church will soon be airing on Unshackled TV. Lead Pastor Ron Heitman has entered into agreement with Unshackled TV to broadcast weekly. CEO, Tim Henderson has stated, “I am thrilled to have such an amazing Lead Pastor and mighty man of God, along with a church that loves, embraces cultural diversity and teaches truth bringing hope to the Nations airing on Unshackled TV. This is a gain for the Kingdom and those around the World viewing Unshackled TV and we are thrilled”. For information about Evangel Church and for those in the Hanover Park area you may visit their website at evangelchurch.cc. 

"From Shelbyville, IL, Shelbyville First Assembly of God and Pastor Don Jefferies has entered into agreement with Unshackled TV. “The heart to reach the lost that exudes from this Pastor, his board and the church is evident in what they do, their talk and their mission, said CEO Tim Henderson. We are thrilled to add such a missional church to our network and broadcast their messages to the World.” For information or to visit Shelbyville First Assembly of God visit their website at firstag62565.org. 

"Unshackled TV enters into an affinity partnership with The Day of The Lord Global Ministries and Rev. Sue Buttry. This partnership will expose Unshackled TV to adherents to the ministry, a global denomination, and teaching from Rev. Sue Buttry, the ministries Executive Director, which we anticipate to be airing sometime in the Fall. We are thrilled to add another and such a wonderful affinity partner to our family of partners with common and missional goals throughout the World. Rev. Sue Buttry is a gifted teacher and leader and we are excited with this new partner and anticipate a long and rewarding relationship in these final moments of the end of days”.

Kristin Mueller, COO Unshackled TV

"Unshackled also announced a recent key appointment with the global expansion. Kristin Mueller has been named COO for Unshackled TV. Kristin joins the team with a wealth of knowledge in Leadership and corporate operations and has hit the ground running. We needed a leader like Kristin who is able to manage the day to day operations and balance strategy and the great demands of a rapidly expanding global enterprise. We welcome Kristin to the Unshackled family with deep respect, excitement and appreciation. 

“We want to thank our viewers for their patience as we transition to our new name and brand and assure them they will be able to access our programming as we transition with updates being announced real time”.

THY WILL BE DONE.....PRAYER - THE PLAN

Continuing on in the area of the Methodology of Prayer and God’s response, let us first recognize what an incredible privilege this is! In the west, we take Christianity and the God of the Bible so casually (which we all do) that we fail to full comprehend just Who we are talking about!  For goodness sake, He is the God of the Universe. He is the Ancient of Days.  He is the Sustainer of Life, the One Who holds every single breath in His Hands. He is the Creator and thus the Judge of all things and all peoples, the One Who holds our eternity in His Hands.

In His Hands,  reside the keys to this wonderful mystery called Prayer.  This is very important to note because this Almighty Supreme Being of the Universe, Who always existed owes us sinful humans nothing but the back of His Powerful Hand. We deserve nothing more than rebuke from He Whose Voice sounds like Niagara Falls (the Book of the Revelation calls His voice “the sound of many waters”). So understanding this truth is primary to grasping absolute fact which is thus – God owes us nothing. Conversely, we owe Him everything. We owe Him Respect; Obedience; Worship and Praise.

Therefore the Methodology of the Effective Prayer life begins with the full comprehension of just to Whom we are praying.  Secondly, we simply do not know how to pray! The average Christian may pray once a week in church or in an emergency health or traumatic situation, cry out for help. Statistics show the average American pastor only prays 10 minutes per week! When we do pray, we stumble around unless we have been prayer warriors for a while. The bible says the following from Romans 8:26-27 “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God".

So given all of this, are we losing courage in our prayer lives when God does not immediately, five minutes after we pray, tell us His Will for our lives? Do you get disheartened when we pray for the healing or health of a loved one and either nothing happens or the loved one’s health declines? Do we give up when we pray about say, moving to a state with more career opportunity when others are telling us to stay put? How does Sally if she should marry Jim, or Junior should marry Jill? Decisions decisions decisions.....How do we pray for an and expect an answer to these life-changing events we all must make, at one time or another?

God knows our weakness. The awesome thing about being born-again is that the same Spirit Who raised Christ from the dead lives inside of us to execute what God has revealed in the two verses above from Romans 8:27-28. The thing is we literally cannot do this on our own. Christians are supposed to function in such a way as to allow the Spirit access to our lives and decisions so He can interpret the needs and wishes of our hearts. This way, He can fulfill what this scripture says, in order to transmit our petitions and prayers directly to the Father in Heaven. Think of it this way. Think of the Holy Spirit as the Divine Filter of Heaven, Who takes our jumbled up words and weird wants, cleans them up and presents them the way God will accept before the Throne. This is the only way for the saint by calling to have our prayers heard by God. There is no going through a third party like a priest or pastor, or lighting a candle or whatever material thing mankind thinks must occur.  There is only the Holy Spirit and what He does, as just described here.

Subsequently, this also confirms a significant truth from the Bible that God ONLY hears the prayer of a righteous man! Who is a righteous man since we are still sinners from time to time? A righteous man is one who has repented, believed the Gospel, cried out to the Lord for the forgiveness of sins and accepted Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior. Anything else is easy believism modern western cotton candy Christianity. THIS is the only first step to following the Plan for Prayer, as God has ordained. This first step is Salvation. 

NEXT: EFFECTIVE PERSISTENT WARRIOR