It’s a delight to be home from the ten day trip to Germany and Austria.    In Austria, I had the joy of speaking at the Vienna International Christian Center Assemblies of  God church, pastored by my friend, Tom Manning.    I remember a decade ago when Tom came to my office with a dream of a great church in  Europe.  Today, that church in Vienna is probably the largest Pentecostal church in western Europe.  Well over a thousand people attended that grand service just a week ago.   From there it was on Garmisch, Germany, for the U.S. Military Personnel Retreat at the Edelweiss Military Resort, perched at the foot of Zugspitze Mountain, the tallest one in Germany.     The beauty is simply unparalleled.   With me on this trip were my brother Ben and his precious wife Linda.    

I loved driving the autobahn across Germany and Austria.    The speed limit there is 120 KLM, which is about 80 MPH.   However, driving at 120 K means you are going to get driven over and stomped on.     I know that many vehicles passed me doing at least 120 MPH - or 180 K’s.   

How I loved the mountains.   At the peak of Zugspitze Mountain, about 10,000 feet, I tromped around in snow.   We reached that pinnacle by cable car.   Wow, what a ride!     We also visited the great castle of King Ludwig, the fabled Neuschwanstein Castle.    It’s the castle Disney used to model his famous Cinderella castles in his amusement parks.    I have seen a lot of European castles, but none to equal this one.    Unfortunately, Ludwig put all his eggs in three “castle” baskets and none of them was finished prior to his mysterious death.    How foolish it is to put all your faith in earth’s treasures.

But for now….it’s just good to be home!

Just a week ago, Darlene had major spinal surgery.    The highly invasive procedure required several hours on the operating table.    In all our 52 years, I have never seen Darlene in such pain.    However, our doctor assured her that she would recover full mobility once again, even though the total recovery time will take most of the rest of this year.    Thanks for all your prayers, concern, e-mail, letters and flowers.   Speaking of which….her room at the hospital looked like a florist shop!     How thoughtful of so many of you.

Wednesday morning, the 8th, I leave for Munich, Germany.     I am so sorry that Darlene cannot make this trip with me - we had planned on her being able to do so.    I fly to Atlanta where I’ll meet my brother Ben and his wife Linda.     In Munich, we have rented a car and we will make a leisurely drive to Vienna, Austria - about 300 miles.     We don’t take the autobahn but opt rather for the scenic routes through the Alps in Bavaria and then up past Linz and on into Vienna.   I am preaching there over the weekend for Missionary Thomas Manning whose international church now attracts a thousand people each week - an astounding feat in Western Europe these days!    A week from today, the three of us will drive to Garmisch, Germany, where I speak for four nights at the US MIlitary Personnel Retreat.     This will be my second opportunity to do this.     25 years ago, Darlene and addressed the retreat when it was held in Bertchtesgaden, Germany, which was the home in World War II to Adolf Hitler and his motley band of Nazi cutthroats.    Being a WWII history “nut,” we visited the ruins of the various Nazi heirarchy homes, the bunkers and tunnels and the Eagle’s Nest high atop the Kehlstein Mountain.     Two years ago, on our 50th anniversary we revisited thos historic places.      This year will be work, work, work.    And home again.

I am thrilled that our son David, a 14-year veteran missionary in Africa, will fill the pulpit for me next weekend.

I’m very excited about it, too!    Eighteen of the books were REVIVALTIME  sermon books, messages I preached on the 700-station radio network for the Assemblies of God.   Alas, they are all out of print.   One of the books was a novel called BEAST.   It, too, is out of print as is my devotional book I wrote for the Thomas Nelson publishers.    So it’s great to have a new book on the shelves.     This one is called:

G O D C A S T

It is published by New Life Press.     It contains 254 articles I wrote for the TV/Radio BYLINE programs, although some of the articles are new.     We produced BYLINE for the Assemblies of God for many years.      Some of the programs were produced on location in such incredible places as the Kremlin in Moscow, at the Great Wall in China, on a camera-safari in the jungles of Africa, in Jerusalem and many other places as well.     

One TV reviewer told me last week he thought GODCAST was the “strongest daily devotional for men” he had ever read.     But the ladies will be blessed by it, too, I truly believe.     There is one new and fresh devotional for each work-day of the week.     

New Leaf is distributing the book all over the world.   You should be able to find it in your favorite Christian bookstore, Barnes and Nobles, Sam’s, Walmart and a host of other locales.     If you cannot find it, we have it available at the church in Fort Myers.   Simply call (239) 936-6277 and ask for my secretary Ginny Traycik.   She will give you all the details.

Please tell your friends about GODCAST.    I believe they really will be blessed by it.    And I would love to read your comments.     Blessings!

Pastor Dan Betzer

The Senior Adult Ministries of the Assemblies of God, led by my life-long friend Dave Weston, planned a cruise this year in the Gulf of Mexico.     Guess when they planned it?    September 8-13!    Guess who else planned to cruise the Gulf at the same time:   IKE, the Hurricane!

So…..was the cruise canceled?   Not at all.    Last Monday afternoon our group of 350 Senior Adults from across America met at the Tampa Port and boarded the Carnivale ship INSPIRATION and headed across Tampa Bay, under the Sunshine Bridge, and into the open water.     The Captain spoke to us via intercom and said not to worry.    Well, he was right.    He cleverly outmaeuvered IKE at every turn.    We were supposed to make our first port of call at Grand Cayman Island; however, that was just pushing too close to the hurricane.   So instead our ship crossed the Gulf diagonally, ahead of Ike, and docked at Progresso, Mexico (a very inappropriate name for that town, I might add!).      The crossing was smooth.   No problem.    Then we headed for Cozemel.     I love Cozemel!     We spent a great day there before heading back across the Gulf after Ike had already crossed it ahead of us before crashing into Galveston and Houston, Texas.      So weatherise, our trip was uneventful.   The ship, newly refurbished, was beautiful, the crew great, the good more than enough and the travelers a joy to be around.

Every afternoon at 3, we had a service in the gorgeous Candelight Lounge.     Not only were the services attended by the 350  in the group, but a number of other travelers asked if they could join us.   Still others gathered around the lobby of the Lounge just to listen.     Dave Weston, himself a brilliant pianist and arranger, surrounded us with lots of music.   We had a men’s quartet, soloists, duets, instrumentalists and, of course, the worship singing from the group.   Then I had the joy of opening God’s Word, my favorite thing in the world to do.     Among those who joined us inadvertently was the Secretary of State for Alabama.    She said the services were such a help and blessing to her.

So….thank God for a safe journey and being with God’s people.   And….thank God we didn’t meet IKE along the way.

It is one thing to have a strong belief system that you can back with solid reasoning; it is quite another thing to hate those who hold contrary views.     How can followers of Christ hate?     While still alive, gasping for His last breaths on the cross, Jesus prayed for forgiveness for those who crucified Him.     God loves; some people hate.      Sad to say, some people I have met boasted of hating without even knowing why.     I prayed once with a man who told me he had hated another fellow so badly for twenty years that if he could kill that man and get away with it, he’d do it!    I asked him why he despised the other?    He looked at me blankly and mumbled, “I don’t know.”    Unbelievable, isn’t it?    Like the old Hatfield and McCoy feud that just kept perpetuating generation after generation.

One reason people hate is because of fear.   We fear something that is different from what we are accustomed to.    The color of skin, another person’s belief system, the culture of a segment of society that differs from our’s — just anything that deviates from what we consider the “norm” is often grounds for hatred.     Even in church circles this can happen.   For example:   Sometimes people who are fervent and vocal in worship look down on those who love the majesty and repetiion of liturgical worship.    “How can they really love God?” they snort.     And, on the other hand, some who love the “high” church celebration look down on the fervent worshipers as ignorant and less than worthy.     There is often hate for people in different denominations or fellowships.    Intolerance of those who believe differently is unacceptable Christian behavior.

Sometimes people hate because of their own inadequacies.   Jealousies and envy become the fertile ground out of which unbelievable hatred generates.    If you have time for a fascinating study, read of the numerous Nazi leaders who had grievous feelings of inferiority so they built themselves up in their own minds by quashing others, especially Jews.

People sometimes hate because of past grievances.    That’s the way it was in the book of Esther.    The Jew Mordecai refused to bowdown to the self-important Persian Haman.    That infurated Haman and he determined to wipe out all the Jews.   Fortunately, God intervened through Mordecai and Esther and Haman was “hoisted on his own petard,” so to speak.     A person is never built up by knocking down others.      But….how does a person get rid of hate?

First of all, by being truly born again of God’s Spirit.     A person in whom Christ truly dwells cannot show forth non-Christian virtues.     For example, no true follower of Christ could ever belong to a white supremist organization.    No true Christian would be anti-Semitic (after all our precious Lord Jesus was a Jew).     A person who is born of the Spirit will be a person of understanding and compassion, showing forth the fruit of the Spirit.     “By their FRUIT ye shall know them,” scripture teaches.

Second, the “hater” should ask God to help him or her develop an understanding of those who are different.   Ask God to put you in their shoes.   We tend to live within the narrow framework of our own experiences.   We need to be comfortable even with that which is new to us.     This does not mean that we accept their thesis or belief systems for our own.   Certainly not!   But it does mean that we are Christ-like to everyone around us.     Jesus was - and so should we be!    How can we ever be light in the darkness when …. we are afraid of or hate the dark?

For the past five days I have been in Cuba.    Three Assemblies of God missionaries joined me in Miami and we flew down to Havana last Monday.     Our goal is to substantially assist our Assemblies of God churches and pastors, led by Cuban General Superintendent Hector Hunter, a delightfully kind and wise leader.    Since 1990, a revival of unprecedented impact in the Assemblies has been reported.   Of the eleven million residents of that island, over 1/2 million of them regularly attend Assemblies of God churches.      Since the communist revolution of 1958-59 led by Fidel Castro, there have been many restrictions on our leaders there, some of them even going to prison.    And yet the church surges on.      There are well over 8,000 churches, home meeting places and cell groups that meet regularly.    Over 6,000 of them meet in the most humble of dwellings, buildings at least fifty years old and many of them over a hundred years old.     I met and had fellowship with pastors who live on the most meager of pay - none over $10 - 15 dollars a MONTH.   With the exception of food which is quite inexpensive in Cuba, the other prices are not much different than they are in the U.S.    Could you even imagine getting along on such meager pay?     The government gives the people some food monthly, but not much more.      Communistic socialism, as you know, works on the principle of “Each person works according to his ability and each receives according to his need.”   In other words, the “state” dictates what you “need.”      But here’s the amazing thing:  Every pastor I met was enthusiastic about his or her life and the future of God’s work.   I never heard one pastor complain about the government of his or her personal situation.     Everything is done for the Kingdom of God and eternity.     I must tell you that I asked God to help me in my own outlook on life and “preaching the eternities.”    

While in Cuba, the four of us traveled from Havana to Santiago de Cuba by plane.    We planned to go to Quantanamo; however, Hurricane Gustav changed our plans.    The extreme western end of the island (which is mountainous and gorgeous) got hit by heavy rains and governmental authorities refused to let anyone drive into the area because of flooding and mudslides.    And the storm was fast heading toward Santiago.  So we rented a car ($1,000 deposit and $185 per day for a beat up car that was filthy inside and out) and headed back across the Island.   We drove about 600 miles over the next couple days, visiting many churches and leaders, finally arriving back in Havana last Thursday.   I caught the last flight out today and only arrived home a few hours ago.     It was a very hard trip, without question.     But my prayer is for those faithful men and women of Cuba who are determined that everyone of Cuba’s 11 million people is personally evangelized with the Gospel in one way or the other.      Now if only America’s followers of Christ will be so motivated and energized!      Pray for Cuba!

I am writing this about 2:30 Tuesday afternoon.    Fay, the tropical storm (that, thank God, never quite made it to hurricane status), still lingers with constant drizzle.    The winds never got much higher than 40 to 50 mph and then only briefly.     So all of us in our neck of the woods are rejoicing in being spared the ravages of a much stronger storm.      Having gone through hurricanes here in recent years, we know their savagery.  Thanks to all who prayed for us.

Yesterday afternoon, Darlene and I had a mid-afternoon dinner at the home of Muslim Imam Mohamed al Darsani and his wife Paulette.    Mohamed is a native of Damascus, Syria, and we were served the finest of Syrian cuisine.    Arabs have a history of hospitality towards those they like, and we were certainly the recipient of that yesterday.     Mohamed and Iranian-born, former Muslim fundamentalist, Resa Safa, now a charismatic Christian pastor in Tulsa, will debate Christianity versus Islam in our church this Sunday night at 6 o’clock.     We expect a huge crowd.   The doors will open at 4:30.     The event will be covered by the media, including live TV.      I know both of these gentlemen.     I eagerly await this discussion!

My personal thanks to Senior Pastor of McGregor Baptist Church here in Fort Myers, Dr. Richard Powell.    In his services last week, he took time to say some wonderful things about our own First Assembly of God.    His remarks were included in their weekly telecasts Saturday and Sunday following.    For 22 years now, First Assembly and McGregor Baptist have been like two strong fortresses for Christ on either end of Colonial Boulevard.     I have the highest regard for these good folks and for Dr. Powell personally.    May the Lord continue to bless them over and over again.

So here we are again….wondering when “Sister Fay” is going to visit us…..how strong she’ll be….how wet….where and for how long.    Kinda like waiting for the guy in the floor above to drop his other shoe, you know?    I pray that you stay safe and sound.     We still plan the week’s activities here (with the exception of Help For Hurting Women - which has been canceled for tonight.)     I’ll keep you posted on any changes on my blog here and on the web site, www.famfm.com.      Please call the church office (936-6277) if you have a storm-activated emergency.      Our whole staff prayed this morning for the safety of not only our church folks, but everyone in Fay’s path.    God bless you, good friend.   

Pastor Betzer

With very few exceptions, I “disappear” into my study on Saturdays.     I complete the preparation for preaching Saturday night, twice on Sunday morning, plus my Sunday School class.     I have also spent a lot of time during the week asking God for direction, studying, jotting down notes to myself and just thinking.     There are two goals to be accomplished before taking the pulpit:   1)   Finding from the Lord what He wants the message to be; and 2) Then researching the scriptures and deciding how to present the message in a way that is understandable and pertinent.     Great chefs, I am told, find the “presentation” of the food to be essential.    So should it be with preachers and teachers.     We should not only know our message backwards and forwards, but we should have heard from God, the Master Designer, how to present these glorious truths in a way that can be comprehended by old and young alike.

In recent weeks, we have “streamed” our Wednesday night and 11 a.m. Sunday morning services around the world.     We know (because of computer reports) that folks watch in over 60 nations.     We are also podcasting.     The responses are amazing and place on me an enormous responsibility to be faithful to God’s Word in the pulpit.     It should come as no surprise that in these nearly 22 years of pastoring First Assembly of God here that preaching and teaching are my priority.      Currently on the weekends I am presenting a series on King David.     This weekend it will be David and Bathsheba, one of the most bizarre and tragic episodes in all scripture.      Of the 20 kings who ruled in Jerusalem, in my own estimation David would come in fourth or fifth behind Uzziah, Hezekiah, Joash and Josiah.    (That’s only my own personal opinion.)   Yet David was “the man after God’s own heart.”   Acts 13:22 makes that fact very clear.       But David dropped the ball many times, no more so than in the case of Bathsheba and her husband Uriah.      What a story!      So now….back to my knees, my study, my Bible and my preparation for the weekend.     Wherever you are, your presence in the House of  God this weekend is essential to your spiritual health.    Hebrews 10:25 admonishes, “Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is!”    See you in church, good friend.

I woke up yesterday morning with a rather painful back, moaning a bit as I was scheduled to play 18 hole of golf with my son David and two other guys.    I ate breakfast, gulped down a Motrin or two, and headed for the course, the gorgeous Raptor Bay layout in Estero, Florida.     After three holes, David and I were two over par, a dreadful portent when playing two-man scramble.     The number four hole at Raptor Bay is a pretty little par three, 138 yards.     The hole was cut in the back of the green behind a swale, so, while we could see the pin easily, we could not see the actual cup placement.     I was hitting third and made a pretty good pass with my 8 iron and the ball headed not only for the green but for the pin.    The ball hit just behind the swale so we could not see it come to rest.    One of our opponents, a marvelous golfer named Les, observed, “That ball might be in the hole.”    Yeah, right.     I have been playing golf for 55 years and never had an ace.  Came close once decades ago.   I’m a hacker, at best a bogie shooter.    Guys who play golf as I do don’t have holes-in-one.     Les was the first one on the green and walked over to the cup.   There, lying at the bottom of the cup was my Titleist 4.     My goodness, I had a hole-in-one!     What a strange sensation!   I had never even seen one (except on television).      My best friend, Dave Weston, has had 5 of them.     So there you are!     55 years!    My next hole-in-one will come when I’m 126 years old.     But then again….who knows.

It was just an ordinary morning when the extraordinary happened.     That could be your story today, friend…that job you need, that healing in your body, that event that changes your life that you truly believed could never happen.      Historic things happen….on ordinary days.