CARM Newsletter 12-04-06

Welcome to the Dec. 4, 2006 Newsletter

Website Changes
Some of you may have already noticed some changes in the CARM website.  I've begun to release the new format for articles.  You can check out an example at http://www.carm.org/apologetics/intro.htm.  I'm still working out the minor bugs as I see them.  But at least I've begun the release process.  Let me know what you think.  Also, I will be redesigning the homepage and the second-level pages that list the articles later.  If you have suggestions, I'm interested.  This is a lot of grunt work.  It will probably take me several months to complete.

Radio Show Status
When I got into the radio station on Tuesday I found out that the radio station was canceling my show because the support was not coming in.  There was a deficit of around $1700 and a show costs around $500 a month to keep on the air.  The $500 a month is an extremely good deal for what I've been doing, five one-hour shows per week.  Anyway, I mentioned it on the air and also mentioned it in the newsletter last week and I was surprised at the response.  We've raised enough to pay the deficit and we might have enough commitments to get close to paying for the monthly requirement.  The way it stands now, the show will continue through the end of December and then we will reassess what we are going to do.  Hopefully, we can continue.

One a side note, the podcasts of the show are being downloaded around 10,000 times a month!

Video camera
As I have mentioned in earlier newsletters, one of the goals I have is to produce video lessons of various types: theology, cults, general apologetics, evangelism, etc.  The idea has been on the back burner as I finish up some large CARM projects and, hopefully, get a camera good enough to produce them (it needs to have a mic plug).  Nevertheless, recently when I was visiting a friend in Salt Lake City (Bill McKeever of www.mrm.org), a young man was there who was interviewing Bill.  He thought he would also do a video of me, too. So, just for kicks, I did a basic introduction to CARM.  If you want to see it please go to, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyLARs_oJD8.  A slight warning, though.  Youtube.com is a place where all kinds of videos are uploaded, so use discretion.  Nevertheless, the link I provided goes straight to the CARM intro.

Birthday
This Saturday, the 9th, I will be 50 years old.  We are having a big shindig at a local "barn" (a totally cool facility) with about 60 people in attendance.  It's going to be a costume party and we are going to have a lot of fun including some games, dancing to music from the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, and lots of snacks.  I have it on reliable information that my wife is going to order a birthday cake, a rather large one, with a significantly embarrassing picture of me transferred on to the front.  I believe this picture has something to do with me holding up a fish.  It was about 30 years ago and I was 60 pounds lighter.  Add a humongous mop of hair (70's style) along with a pair of ripped up shorts, and you can imagine a pretty nauseating image.  I'm sure everyone will enjoy it as they look at it, then me, and start laughing.

By the way, were going to have some CARM-ites from all over at the party.  They're from New Jersey, Southern California, Central California, and Oregon.  I'm really looking forward to it.  That's why I'm producing this newsletter early because I suspect that I will be too busy saying "yes dear" and doing all the "honey do's" that my wife will be assigning me in the next few days in preparation.

That reminds me, two weeks ago my wife and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary.  Praise God.  She's great -- except for her taste in men.

Need staff:  someone to raise support and move to Boise, ID.
I've let this request run for several newsletters and have received some responses.  For the sake of brevity and efficiency, I need to let people know that I'm only interested in qualified individuals.  What makes someone qualified is an education and/or a calling with natural ability in apologetics.  I need of someone who could move here to the Boise Idaho area, support him or herself, and help research and write for CARM (and move to full time as the support comes in).  You don't have to be educated, but it would help.  The Lord will tell me who was the right person.  So, if you're interested, slightly obsessive, don't have both oars in the water, can write and research, are persistent, don't mind doing some grunt work here and there, and like to stick your nose where some think it doesn't belong, then you might be the right person for CARM. 
I'm looking for people who are very dedicated, not those who express interest on a whim because they think it would be cool.  One more thing, this kind of Ministry is definitely difficult and it carries with it a lot of trials and tribulations.  Anyone who seriously considers doing this must expect difficulties spiritually, financially, physically, materially, etc.  That's the reality so consider this prayerfully.  Please don't contact me unless you are very serious about it:   [email protected]

Support
CARM is supported by the voluntary gifts and offerings of people like you.  The holiday seasons is here and things get tighter financially For everyone.  Please don't forget CARM.  This ministry doesn't stop for Christmas.  CARM is on the front lines and we need all the help we can get.  Please pray for us.  We need it.

Thanks Again
Thanks to all of you who have been signing up for the online schools and donations to CARM.    They have been a real encouragement to this Ministry as they have increased lately.

Suggestions?
Do you have any suggestions for the newsletter or the CARM website?  If so, let me know at [email protected]  Thanks.

Love and Hate Mail

CARM is constantly getting e-mails of thanks and praise and condemnation.  Here are a few...in the raw.  (At the suggestion of a reader, the hate mail is first so that the last taste in your mouth, is the love mail).

• Hate mail:  (Maybe I'm slipping, only one hate email this week.)

  • Sir, I am sorry that you feel this way. But it is wrong to write just absolute lies about our Church and you know they are.
  • I just came upon your web page. And I am sickened. . . . I think it is very UNchristian to belittle someone for their beliefs, no matter if you believe they are wrong.
• Love mail
  • Thank you for saving my life. This is certainly not an exaggeration as I have recently dedicated my life to Jesus and have been baptized. This is all because of sites like yours and the holy spirit working on me. Your site was the first site I ever looked at regarding J.Ws and I was terrified and dumfounded at all the crud they had been feeding me over the years. It
    took a lot of cross checking with other sites before I was completely convinced and now I am really free, praise God.
  • I would like to start out by saying that I consider myself a logical young man, and perhaps the worst sort of atheist... Which is why I say with complete and total seriousness that although I am ideologically opposed to your views, I absolutely admire your webpage, especially your very well done treatise on atheism....The reason why I write is that although short of a miracle I will never believe in god, I am very pleased to see that there are still intelligent Christians left. In reading your internet page I took great interest in most of your writings and much of the logical debate pleased me greatly, and even tore apart frequent atheistic arguments that I have heard before. It heartens me to understand that there are still good Christians left.
  • I wanted to send you a thank you for all the hard work you have put into your web site.  It has been an asset to me for years now.  I first started using your site as I interacted more and more with Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons while in college.  For the past several weeks I've been teaching a series at church on different religions and cults, and your site has been a great source of accurate information and biblical sound info.  Keep up the good work!  Just thought I'd throw this out to you as a suggestion, do you think you'll be adding a section down the road for Free Masonry?

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Same as Last Newsletter

CARM Ministries

• Please consider supporting CARM financially at $5 per month: here

• Prayer Ministry - CARM does have a prayer Ministry.  If you are interested in joining us as we pray for others' needs, or if you have needs that you need prayer for, please go to http://www.carm.org/prayer.htm and sign up.

• Online Schools. Theology, Apologetics, and Critical Thinking.  You can support CARM and also learn.

• Discussion Boards - http://www.christiandiscussionforums.org/v/index.php.  We have a very active discussion boards.

• Chat Room - http://www.carm.org/boards/chat.htm.  Want a live discussion?

• Live Radio Show! - The show is called "Faith and Reason with Matt Slick."  I am on for one hour, five days a week, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. (Mountain Time). It's a live call-in show where people can ask all kinds of questions dealing with Christianity, the Bible, cults, counseling, the occult, etc.  You can call in to the number is 208-377-3790 and/or listen live via the Internet at www.myfamilyradio.com on the AM station.

• Podcasting CARM now has podcasting ability for past radio shows:  http://feeds.feedburner.com/carmorgpodcasting.

• Weekly Teaching Time on Paltalk - Every Tuesday evening I host a live discussion room on paltalk.com. Paltalk is a free voice chat system that is quite good. It is full of Christians as well as non-Christians and the battles over truth are frequent. It is however, a good place to learn how to defend your faith. If interested, please join us for our weekly discussion by going to paltalk, download the program, and join us on Tuesday evenings at 8pm, Mountain time.

Suggestions?
Do you have any suggestions for the CARM newsletter or the CARM website?  If so, please contact us at [email protected]  We want to know what you think, areas of need that you would like to see addressed, as well as any comments you might have.

From the CARM Theological Dictionary

Be fishers of men, not keepers of the aquarium