Mission Statement

OUR MISSION STATEMENT

Our goal is to provide programming that's safe for the entire family to watch!

It is our goal with 4x4TV (and every other show we produce) to present ourselves and everyone that we involve in the show in a wholesome, yet informal manner. It is our desire that every single minute of our programming, including the commercials, be presented in a manner that the entire family can view.

While our programs are not intended as a method for furthering our religious beliefs, our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior is such an integral and important part of our lives that we would feel remiss if we left those beliefs out. Although the "politically correct" thing to do would be to acknowledge that we have no intentions of convincing anyone unfamiliar with Jesus Christ and His purpose to learn more about Him and His great sacrifice, it would be a tragedy to know of His powers for our salvation and eternal life and not want to share them with everyone that we know.

So even in our everyday life, we find ourselves driven to "share His Word." This poem by an anonymous writer explains it the best.

Are You My Friend?

My friend I stand in judgment now,
And feel that you're to blame somehow.
On earth I walked with you day by day,
And never did you point the way.
You knew the Lord in truth and glory,
But never did you tell the story.
My knowledge then was very dim,
You could have led me safe to Him.
So as we lived on this earth,
You never told me of this "second birth."
And now I stand this day condemned,
Because you failed to mention Him.
We walked by day and talked by night,
And yet you showed me not the light.
You let me live and love and die,
You knew I'd never live on high!
Yes, I called you friend for life,
And trusted you in joy and strife.
And yet in coming to the end,
I cannot call you now my friend.

This poem, "Are You My Friend?" was supposedly written by a man who, at the end of his life is faced with the realization that he will now spend the rest of eternity (and that's a mighty long time, my friends) in the most horrible of places imagined - Hell. His realization is made all the worse when he finds that many other people will spend eternity in a place with beauty, peace, and happiness beyond description - Heaven. Both of these places he'd heard of but he never really considered that they were real. Upon his death though, he was faced with the ultimate truth...which was the decision as to whether to spend eternity in Heaven or Hell! The truth he discovers is that God, who created all things, sent His Son to die for us so that we may live eternally with Him in this beautiful place called Heaven; that we must acknowledge God's Son, Jesus Christ and the fact that He came to earth and died for our sins, so that we may indeed enter His Heavenly kingdom for all of eternity.

Now, as this man is condemned to spend eternity in Hell, he also realizes that his friend back on earth knew the truth. His friend knew this Jesus Christ, and his friend knew that everyone that didn't know Jesus would be condemned to the horrors of Hell. His friend never shared this important truth with him, and yet he called him his friend.

Our life on this earth is for such a short time, and all that we do here is like dust in the wind if we never discover the truth to eternal life in God's kingdom.

How do we do that?

First, we must acknowledge that we are indeed sinners (we all do wrong things in our life) and that because of this we will never be able to get to God's kingdom on our own. The Bible (the only true Word of God) says that:

1. We are, by nature, all sinners: "There is none righteous, no, not one": (Romans 3:10) "For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)
2. Sin is what separates us from God and His kingdom: "But your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He will not hear." (Isaiah 59:2)
3. The penalty for our sin is eternal punishment (in Hell!): "In flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power." (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9)

Second, we must realize that we all must be saved from our sins to reach His kingdom. The Bible says:

1. That we all must be born again! (ever wonder where that saying "Born Again Christians" came from?): Jesus answered... "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3)
2. We must all become children of God. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those that believe in His name:" (John 1:12)
3. Being born again as children of God, we must become new people. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Third,we must realize that we cannot save ourselves from our sins. No, we cannot live a perfect life, nor can we save ourselves from our failings. The Bible says that:

1. Your righteousness will not save you. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us..." (Titus 3:5)
2. Your great religious deeds will not save you either. "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, not of works, lest anyone boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
3. Only Jesus Christ can save you from sin and the penalties of that sin. "Not is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)

Fourth, we must realize that Jesus Christ, the Son of God died for our sins and paid the penalty for our sins. The Bible says:

1. It was Jesus Christ's death that paid the penalty for ours sins and wrongdoings. "Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness -- by whose stripes you were healed. " (1 Peter 2:24)
2. It was the giving of Jesus Christ's blood that we are cleansed from the sins we commit. "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." (Ephesians 1:7)
3. It was Jesus Christ's resurrection, His coming back to the living from death that provides (and proves) that we shall have eternal life. "But now Christ is risen from the dead...." (1 Corinthians 15:20)

And fifth,we need to realize that for Jesus to save us from our sins, we need to acknowledge Him as our Savior, believe in who He is, and accept Him as our Lord. The Bible says how we can do this:

1. We need to believe in Jesus Christ, our Lord. "...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." (Acts 16:31)
2. We must ask the Lord Jesus to forgive us. "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord," (Acts 3:19)
3. We must also ask the Lord to come into our lives and save us. "For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." (Romans 10:13)

To accomplish all this requires nothing more than asking the Lord into your life. Jesus said, "Knock, and I will answer." To "knock" simply pray to God a prayer something like this:

Dear Lord God, Heavenly Father, I know I am a sinner and I need forgiveness. I know that there is nothing I can do on my own to gain a place in your kingdom. I believe that You sent Your only Son, Jesus Christ to this earth to die for my sins. I believe that He died, was buried, and rose again from the dead. I now want to turn from my sins and accept Jesus Christ into my heart and into my life as my personal Savior and Lord. Please forgive me for my sins and show me how to walk in Your ways. In Jesus name, Amen.

If you've made the decision to accept Jesus as your personal Savior, let me suggest that you continue to pray to God every day, thanking Him for His gift of your salvation. Also find a copy of the Bible to study more of God's word and the wonderful works and miraculous gift of His Son Jesus. Then find a church to attend that teaches the word of God directly from the Bible.

And finally, if you've accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, share the news with those you love. And I'll see you in Heaven......

*All scripture references from the New King James Version.

• If any of you are interested in some great Christian sites with podcasts, here are four of my favorites:
www.oneplace.com
www.walkintheword.com
www.answersbc.org
www.truthforlife.org
www.joegibbsonline.com

If you have a favorite, e-mail me with the link — maybe we'll start a page just for encouragement!