New Christian Investment Book

Hello to everyone who has been supporting my blog. I am happy to announce the release of my latest book - this time catering for the Christian readership who are interested in property investment.

It is entitled "Christian Investing and Money Management" and is published through Lulu.com and is distributed by Ingram .It is available online at Debra’s Storefront You can also find more details on my webpage at Christian Family BooksI have been getting some very positive feedback from readers and have several magazines who will be doing reviews on it very shortly.This book fills the gap for works on Christian Investment that are applicable to the Australian property market and taxation system, and most of the principles can also be easily adapted to other countries. It covers areas including budgeting, goal setting, compounding interest, using other people's money to help build wealth and much more.It is the culmination of over eight years research, interviews and personal experience.This book examines the area of Christian Stewardship and how this relates to careful money management, budgeting and investing.It is also available through Amazon and many other on line book stores - and all brick and mortar stores as well (so feel free to ask your local stores to order it in). The ISBN is 978-1-4303-0428-9Thank you again for all your support.RegardsDebra LohrereAuthor of books on Property investment and Christian prophecy. Please visit Property Investment Books .

Is anyone burning in Hell today?

There are various lines of thought in relation to Hell. Some believe that neither Heaven or Hell exist and that when we die that it the end of our existance. In Christian circles some teach that Hell is merely a ‘separation from God’, others contend that it is a fiery place of eternal torture where sinners instantly go at the moment of death. According to this theology, the lost are sizzling right now, somewhere in the fiery bowels of this earth. Most Christians believe that Hell is an eternal place of suffering. Is this what the Bible really teaches?

In the New Testament there are three different Greek words that are translated into “Hell” in English. They are “Tartarus,” “Gehenna,” and “Hades.” Tartarus is used only once in 2 Peter 2:4 “God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell [Tartarus], and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.” Tartarus means “dark abyss” or “place of restraint.” Notice also that it says the evil angels are reserved unto judgment, meaning that the day of judgment has not occurred yet, and they are not currently in the red hot fiery underworld. We know that in fact they are busy roaming the earth, actively tempting and attacking the people of God as well as the lost.

The second word used for Hell is “Gehenna” which is derived from Hinnon, a rubbish dump outside of Jerusalem where trash and dead animals were burned. It continually smouldered during Bible times. Jesus used this word when He warned about the danger of Hell Fire at the ‘end of the world’ Matthew 13:40-42 “The harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the weeds are gathered in burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of this world. The Son of Man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them that do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire, and there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” This word does definitely relate to fire and being burned up or consumed away.

In the above verse you will notice that Jesus spoke of the Hell Fire being at the end of the world. Peter further clarified the timing of the Hell Fire to be at the day of judgment, not in the present time 2 Peter 3:7 “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men”.

The Bible clearly shows that ungodly men will be burned up by Hell Fire after the millenial reign of Christians in Heaven. Noone’s loved ones are burning in Hell today. Our just and loving God does not sentence anyone to Hell Fire before they have been judged on the day of judgment.

The third Greek word translated to Hell is “Hades” which means the grave. Revelation 20:14-15 “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire”. This verse clarifies that “Hades” itself is not a fiery place, but will be cast into “the lake of fire.” This verse is really saying that death and the grave will be consumed by fire and will be no more. There will be no longer be any more death and no more graves.

For more info visit Truth about HellBy Debra Lohrere Christian Investment and Prophecy Books

Are all the dead Christians in Heaven?

It has long been taught that when a Christian dies they go straight to heaven. Is this what the Bible teaches or have paganistic doctrines and myths crept unbeknown into our Christian faith?

What did Jesus say about his friend Lazarus who had died? John 11:11-14 “These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead”.

Jesus clearly showed us that the dead sleep. If Lazarus had gone to heaven Jesus would have said that he was in heaven with the Father. Also, after Jesus raised Lazarus, did anyone ask Lazarus “What was it like in heaven? Tell us about it”. No one did, because it was the belief of the day that when someone died they slept until the resurrection on the last day.

This is further clarified in Psalms where we are told that when we die our thoughts perish Psalms 146:4 “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish”.

We are also told that we will not rise again until the heavens are no more (when Jesus returns) Job 14:12 “So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep”.

Paul reinforced this understanding 1 Thessalonians 4:16 “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first”:

Many Christians believe that when they die they go directly to heaven, even though the day of judgment has not even occurred yet. They visualize themselves in heaven with the angels praising God. But what does the Bible say? Psalms 115:17 “The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence”.

It is clear that the Bible writers all believed that the state of the dead is like sleeping, to be awakened the moment after they closed their eyes at the final trumpet at the coming of Jesus on the day of redemption. 1 Corinthians 15:52 “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed”.

Job made it clear that we return to dust and are no more until the resurrection Job 7:21 “And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and take away mine iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be”.

There are many deceptions of Satan going on in these end times and spiritism is on the increase. If people realized that the dead are all asleep and can’t communicate with us, then they would start to question who exactly it is that they are communicating with. There are many deceptive demonic spirits in the invisible world around us, who take every opportunity they can to lead people astray. It is time that we recognized that when mediums are speaking to the ‘other side’ it is actually the evil angels that they are talking to and not dead beloved relatives.

How can we help those who have been tricked by these deceptive spirits, if we don’t demonstrate to people from a Biblical perspective that the dead are asleep and have no thoughts, so it can’t be them doing the communicating?

All Bible references are from the King James Version.

For more info visit Truth about DeathBy Debra Lohrere Christian Investment and Prophecy Books

How long will Hell Fire burn?

The Bible clearly shows us that on the day of judgment at the end of time, the wicked will be punished with Hell Fire. Many Christians believe that this Hell Fire will last forever and that the wicked will be eternally tormented in pain and anguish. Is this really what the Bible shows?

Jesus said Matthew 25:41 “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” He also said John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. In the one verse it would seem that the wicked will live forever in everlasting fire and yet the other verse tells us that only those who belong to Jesus will not perish. This means that wicked will perish.

The only conclusion we can come to is that the everlasting fire, is not actually fire that is everlasting, but rather fire which consumes with everlasting consequences.

Are there other places in the Bible where it says forever, but the event mentioned has finished? There are actually many examples of this. Just as today people will often say things like “The show was so boring it went on forever” and “It took forever to get the house painted”. These same type of expressions were also used in the Bible for events that lasted a long time, but not actually eternally or for events that had everlasting consequences. For example the Bible describes the fire that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrha as eternal fire. Jude 1:7 “Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire”. This fire is not still burning today. It had eternal consequences, as the cities were forever destroyed and the fire was not extinguished. This fire was allowed to burn until it had consumed everything away and then it went out.

This is the same type of fire that “death and hell” will be thrown into and the same type of Fire from Heaven that will consume the wicked after the judgment. Depending on their sentence they will be either consumed quickly with little pain, or else have to suffer longer for more severe sins. The Bible shows us that they will not live forever burning in Hell, because we are told that they will be as ashes under our feet. Malachi 4:3 “And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts”.

Many Christians think that Satan will be thrown into eternally burning hell fire and yet the Bible shows that he too will be consumed and will be no more. Ezekiel 28:18-19 “Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more”.

The Bible further clarifies that fate of the wicked Malachi 4:1 “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch”.

Our awesome and loving God who abounds in mercy is not going to torture and torment the wicked forever and ever in the agony of an eternally burning Hell. He will justly deal with them and they will perish for their sins. For the Wages of Sin are death.

For more info visit Truth about Hell
By Debra Lohrere Christian Investment and Prophecy Books

What does Stewardship encompass?

The Biblical principle of stewardship of our finances encompasses three separate points. Firstly it relates to good money management. We need to be careful not to squander the resources that God gives to us. We should learn good money management techniques, and learn not to be susceptible to impulse buying.

The second aspect of stewardship is related to investing to make the resources that God gives to us grow, so that we can sow more back into the Lord’s work. In the parable that Jesus told about the three servants who were given gold coins. Two of them invested the money and gave their master more than He had entrusted them with. The third servant went and buried it for safekeeping – and the master was angry at that servant for not putting the money He had been entrusted to use.

The third aspect of stewardship is giving. We have been commanded to “Give tithes and offerings to the Lord”.

We have been instructed us to be good stewards and to use what God gives us wisely.

I believe that God wants to bless his children and to bless them abundantly.

Don’t we want the best for our own children? We don’t want them to struggle financially and have the pressure of trying to make ends meet.

I am sure that our Father in Heaven is exactly the same. He wants us to put Him first in our lives, and in turn wants to bless us.

God wants us to be financially secure not just so that we don’t have to struggle with financial pressures – but also because prosperity allows us to bless others more.

When we wisely invest our finances we will have more available to effectively support the missionaries in the field, to finance Christian satellite TV stations and to support the needy in our local community.

A wealthy person has far more power to aide the needy financially than the best-meaning poor person.

I believe God is calling us to embark on the road to financial security so that we can be in the position to fund the resources needed to assist in the great revival.

Some Christians believe that it is wrong to desire wealth, but at the same time they try to give whatever they can. They fail to see that they would be able to give far more generously if they possessed invested what they had and increased their finances.

We need to remember that our finances belong to God. He is our master and we are just the caretakers. We should do our utmost to carefully manage and increase what He has given us, and be open to Hearing from the Holy Spirit to guide us in the direction that He leads us to sow these finances back into.

God is calling us to be proactive with investing. He wants us not only to have faith and believe that He wants to bless us, and to openly and joyfully accept what He wants to give us, but to also seek the wisdom and knowledge that are required both to create and to manage wealth.

With more wealth comes more responsibility. But I believe that as we take care of the little that God has given us, and are faithful in giving as He directs – He will Help us learn what we need to know and will Help to point us in the right direction so that we can continue to create more and use it wisely.

He wants us to become wise investors, and to find out as much knowledge as we can to enable us to make wise, well informed decisions.

At school we were taught skills to enable us to leave school and get a job and earn a wage. But we were never taught how to manage our finances or how to build wealth. We were not taught how to invest.

As good stewards, we need to self-educate ourselves about how-to and where-to invest our resources for the most effective growth.

Debra Lohrere is the author of Christian Prophecy and Investment books Christian Investment and Prophecy Bookshttp://www.propertyinvestmentbooks.com/christianbooks.html