Does Paul say that he regrets his experiences in the Lord? No. What does he say? He writes in Philippians 3:7-11,

"But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him, and the power of His Resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."

Paul did not run from suffering and loss for his faith, he COVETED it. He wanted to experience all that Jesus experienced in His humanity for us so that he might be completely one with Jesus. Secondly, Paul recognized that it was through his imprisonment and sufferings that others not only came to Jesus, but that other Christians were motivated to go out and preach the Gospel without fear. He writes in Colossians 1:24 and Philippians 1:12-14,

"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body (which is the Church) in filling up that which is lacking in Christ's afflictions."

"Now I want you to know, brethren that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear."

Only when the brethren saw Paul putting the importance of the Gospel above his very life did they then find the courage, through Paul’s example, to go out and preach the Gospel without fear, even if it meant losing all that they had.

One of the primary seeds in Paul's life that prepared him to receive Christ was his witnessing the stoning of Stephen for his faith in Jesus which Paul sanctioned (Acts 7:54-60). When the jailer in Acts 16:22-34 saw Paul and Silas's faith as a result of their suffering and imprisonment, he was saved and his whole household.

Why was Paul willing to lose everything including his life for the cause of the Gospel? Because Paul was a true believer. He really believed that this life was temporary and would pass away but that Heaven is forever and never passes away and proved it by investing in the future life, not in the present life. I believe this is why God gave Paul so much space in the New Testament that we have today. I believe God wanted us to see and learn from Paul's example of his faith and walk with God and imitate it. While in prison, Paul wrote the Church about his life and example, "The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you." (Phil 4:9).

Do You know what most Christians say to America today through their selfish self-centered life-styles? This is what they say: America, this life is all there is. There is no after life, so you better invest in this life now! That is exactly what most Christians in this country do. They are not willing to walk across the street let alone give their lives for the cause of the Gospel. They say to America in essence, We really don't have any faith at all, and America responds accordingly.

America does not see Christians who really believe in what they profess. The only way that America will turn to Jesus is when they see American Christians not only professing that they believe that Heaven is more real than earth, but when they see Christians proving in life-style this confession by investing everything that they have into the Gospel and by losing if necessary everything that they have for the Gospel. Only then will America come to know that Heaven is more real than earth and therefore a better investment then in this temporary life. They are not going to believe and turn to Jesus until they see that we really do believe in our life-styles and actions as well as word. As the old saying goes, I hear what you do, I do not hear what you say.

My message is not a popular message among Christians in America. This is because Christians in America don't want to sacrifice anything to bring another person to Jesus. They want to live a costless Christianity. This is not possible if we want to bring others to Jesus. This is what Jesus was talking about in Luke 18:8 when He said, However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? When Jesus comes back, will he find a Church in America putting their trust in Him for their present and future needs and investing in the Kingdom of God? Or will he find a Church with no faith in the life to come at all and instead investing and putting their trust in a bankrupt world system?

Brothers and sisters, there is no such thing as a safe and costless Christianity. In order to truly walk with Jesus and consistently share Jesus with others, it is going to cost you something, everything in many cases. Brothers and sisters, if we are to turn America around, it is not going to happened without it costing You and I something. Sharing the love of Jesus Christ with another human being is the most loving thing you can do for another human being; but if it has not cost you something you have not loved anyone. If you have never been hurt, you have never loved anybody. You cannot love without it costing you something and eventually being hurt in the process.

Brothers and sisters, I implore You in the name of Jesus Christ, give your lives and your time and your resources to the sharing of the Gospel with others. Let me tell you how I live my life: I work at a regular forty-hour a week job. When I come home at night I have a Quiet Time in the Word with Jesus. I then spend a half hour in prayer. I next study the New Testament in Greek, Christology and Apologetics. I then eat. For the next three hours I write Christian literature, like I am doing right now, mainly for Evangelism and reaching the lost with the Gospel and for training and encouraging Christians to reach others with the Gospel. I go to bed and get up at 5:00 A.M. and spend a half hour in prayer seeking the Father to draw me close to Him, to make me one with Him, for Him to reveal his heart, mind and emotions to me. It was during this time one morning the Father told me to write the content of this Chapter. I then spend another half hour studying Christian apologetics for the defense of the Gospel. I then go to work. Friday nights I relax and play, but on the weekends I spend my mornings again studying and writing on the Gospel and my afternoons out on the streets, malls, beaches, etcetera sharing the Gospel with anyone who will listen to what I have to say. I come home and work some more on my Christian writings. I eat, study, write and go to bed. Sunday afternoon I again go out somewhere and find someone to share the Gospel with. I relax the rest of Sunday, have my Quiet Time with Jesus, relax and go to bed and start my weekly routine all over again. Jesus said,

"DO NOT lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matt 6:19-21).

You see brothers and sisters, I do believe that Heaven is more real than earth and for this reason have committed every resource that I have and every dime and free waking moment of my life to the investment and preaching of the Gospel to men. I do this because I also believe that there is an eternal hell and that men without Jesus, will go to hell forever. The Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 1:9,

"And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power."

Hell is just as real and eternal as Heaven. Hell is more real than this earth because the earth will pass away. Hell is forever. Men on this earth without Jesus will spend eternity in Hell.

Brothers and Sisters, Heaven is more real and a million times more glorious and more fulfilling than anything this life has to offer. How do I know this is true? Because Jesus came back from the dead to prove to us it is true. When you get to Heaven you can then have your expensive vacations, Porsches, beautiful mansions, etcetera; but right now, Jesus needs you to invest in Heaven by giving your life, time and resources to the preaching of the Gospel to men. Until you do, America will not turn back to God, but will instead continue on its pagan path and eventually will take the step of eradicating Christians completely from America in order to live with themselves and their selfish self-centered pagan life-styles. How do I know? Because They are already doing it in the job market. You can get involved in the battle now or suffer later without reward.