Uncategorized – Page 67

“The Main Thing is to Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing!”

Value #1 The passion to know, love, and become like Jesus Christ.

He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.
(Colossians 1:18)

To say that Jesus is our #1 value is a huge understatement. Making Jesus the center of our lives is not only the #1 value, but it is also the one value on which all other values hinge. Jesus must be our all-consuming passion in life. Here are a few reasons why:

· He deserves our passion (Rom 5.8, Eph 1.20-21)
· Nothing else is worthy of our passion (1 Cor 2.2, Phil 3.8)
· There is no passion without Him (Rom 11.36, 1 Cor 8.6, Col 1.17)

Our passion is expressed in knowing, loving, and becoming like Jesus. We aggressively seek knowledge about the King of kings by reading His Word (esp. the Gospels, Rom 10.17, Col 3.16), talking to others about Him (1 Jn 1.3), through the Holy Spirit (Jn 14.26, 1 Jn 2.27), and experiencing Him in our circumstances (Rom 8.28-29). We love Him by placing Him first in our lives through trust and obedience (Jn 6.29, 14.15). This is almost always tested by the way we treat people (1 Jn 4.20). To stop short of becoming like Him denies our real knowledge of and love for Him (1 Jn 2.6). We must become like Jesus by applying our information about Him and our adoration for Him into emulation of Him. This ultimately is what we were designed to do and glorifies God the Father.

Our passion must always be refocused on its intended target, Jesus Christ (Heb 12.2). As the Pastor said in his sermon yesterday,

“Jesus is not category A and the rest of life falls into the other categories. He is A to Z. He is my life and everything else is subservient to Him. Do not compare any of your other priorities with Him.”
Pastor Carlton Weathers, Grace Fellowship Community Church, Anniston, AL

It is a daily battle to remember this and to realign our lives so that He is our all. Passion must have an object and the only one worthy of our passion in the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is Master, King, and Savior.

The main thing quote ~ Stephen R. Covey

This is one of the most popular searches in my blog. If it was helpful, please click the “LIKE” box below. Thanks and have a blessed day.

Principles and Values: Glenn Beck speaks the truth

“The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.” (Luke 6:45)

Last night (March 14, 2009) on Fox News Glenn Beck held a national town hall meeting to discuss principles and values. There was a sense a desperation and determination not to let our country slip into the abyss of lethargy and corruption. Many of the values Mr Beck is talking about have their roots in the Bible. I can’t think of a better place to go to get guidance for one’s life than the Bible.

It has become popular for organizations, industries, churches, and even individual family units to build their lives around a set of principles and values. I believe this is absolutely essential! If we intend to arrive at the right destination, we must first know what that destination is and secondly, know how to get there. The truth is we all live our lives based on a set of values whether we acknowledge them or not. The trick is to develop the right set of values that will ultimately glorify God and will be to our best interest in the end.

I’d like to start a new series on the 9 values that I have embraced over the past few years. They are:
1. The passion to know, love, and become like Jesus Christ.
2. The truth and sufficiency of the Scriptures for the whole of life.
3. The transforming power of the Gospel.
4. The leading and empowering of the Holy Spirit.
5. Expectant faith and persevering prayer rooted in the promises of God.
6. The dignity and value of every person.
7. Love and grace expressed among us in community.
8. Families and relational networks in discipling the nations.
9. Interdependent relationships in the Body of Christ in advancing the Gospel.

I hope to stimulate your thinking and help you discover biblical values. More importantly, I’d like us to go beyond just thinking and get into the very fibers of our daily lives and to apply these values as we walk through each day.

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

Update – Thanks for Praying

Praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned;
(Colossians 4:3)

First I want to thank so many of you who have been praying and fasting for Deb and me as we are on convalescent leave due to my Multiple Sclerosis. I want you to know that God has been working powerfully in my life since we started this time. He has spoken clearly through my daily quiet times. I have experienced these times of hanging out by the fountain of life before and it is good to be back once again.

The Word has been like electricity. Promises for the future and His love for me are jumping off the pages. I am so excited (even with MS limitations). Just as the disciples only had 5 loaves and 2 fishes, I recognize my limitations. On the other hand Jesus has endless resources. MS is a physical limitation that God has no problem glorifying Himself through. Having said that, He has made it quite clear I’m being sifted by the enemy. This is more spiritual than physical. I have begun to pray along the lines of spiritual warfare versus a simple medical condition. And as many of you have expressed, God has impressed on me that this is temporary. I will experience His healing hand.

Although this time has been good, there have been some tough things to grapple with. I believe the Father is pruning me for greater fruitfulness. I’ve had to examine the darker side of my life. Some of what I’m experiencing is the loving discipline of the Father. Ingratitude, pride, restlessness, and the tongue are areas He has brought to mind. I gladly receive the rebuke and am repenting.

As far as my health is concerned, I have been feeling much better over the past 15 days. Fewer tremors and only one day where I hit the bottom of the fatigue scale (previously it was 2 days out of the week). My energy levels have been up and my general attitude is positive. This is certainly a direct result of your concerted prayers. Thank you!
We will continue on Convalescent Leave until the end of March and then travel to Colorado Springs for some meetings with Navigator Leadership. We should be home at Fort Benning around the 13-15th of April.

Please continue to pray:
· God will continue to clarify Deb and my future role in ministry
· This rest will have lasting effects in my life
· God would glorify Himself in my MS and deliver me from the Evil One
· The gang at Ft Benning would continue to thrive in Kingdom work
· Jesus would richly bless all those praying for me
· I would continue to have the opportunity to participate in ministry that reaches the Nations

I am a very blessed man to have friends like you!

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

Testimony 20: Prayers for Korea

Chapter 20

This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.
(1 John 5:14-15)

Before leaving for Korea, I also prayed three very specific prayers: 1. That God would help me find a missionary to fellowship with 2. To help me start a Bible study for soldiers 3. To give me a man to disciple. Within the first week I met a missionary named Ray Massey who was willing to meet once a week for accountability and fellowship. Within two weeks I started a small Bible study with about eight people. And within three weeks I was discipling a guy named Kevin. God had answered all three of my prayers and I started to see how God could use my life in building the Kingdom apart from the safety net of the Fort Campbell ministry. My vision for personal ministry was tested in Korea and it was the foundation for ministry in the future. I think one of the secrets to answered prayer is to pray the things that are most closely related to the matters on God’s heart. I was praying that He would use me in His Kingdom and the spreading of the gospel. Jesus is certainly excited about helping us accomplish His work!

Testimony 1: In the Beginning
Testimony 2: Jesus is Watching You
Testimony 3: Paratrooper Religion
Testimony 4: Afraid of being Left Behind
Testimony 5: The Geographical Solution
Testimony 6: The Geographical Solution Fails
Testimony 7: The Seed is Planted
Testimony 8: Spiritual Melee
Testimony 9: Seeing the Light
Testimony 10: Receiving God’s Plan for My Life
Testimony 11: A New Creature
Testimony 12: What about You?
Testimony 13: A Little Miracle
Testimony 14: An Apostle to the Soldier
Testimony 15: First Steps toward Growth
Testimony 16: Being Discipled
Testimony 17: Life Time Mentor
Testimony 18: Key Lessons from Cecil
Testimony 19: Out of the Nest
Testimony 20: Prayers for Korea

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

A Summary of the Living and Discipling Among the Lost Series

· It takes persistence and courage to be an effective witness for Jesus Christ.
· God leads people to Himself. We simply participate in loving obedience.
· Evangelistic methods are important but ultimately conversion is a work of God.
· The lost are all around us. They are even sitting in the pew next to us in church.
· The far lost are those who will take much time and effort to inch toward Jesus.
· Jesus spent most of His efforts addressing the spiritually hungry.
· Be postured to identify the spiritually hungry and invite them to church or Bible study.
· The more people you invite, the more potential you have of winning someone to Christ.
· The insider is essential. His natural network of relationships allows for a visual authentication of the life transformed by Jesus.
· But, as warm as the insider’s contacts are, most converts tend to be people outside our immediate circles.
· We must reach out to strangers knowing that some are more likely to follow Jesus than the people in our natural circles.
· How I reach out to strangers is as important as initiating the contact.
· What a spiritual seeker is fed is as important as the loving way we approach them. Feed them the Scriptures, feed them Jesus!
· A spiritual leader’s priority is to equip others to do the work of evangelism. This multiplies the efforts for the sake of the Kingdom. Failure to maximize God’s gifts is irresponsible.
· One last time: God leads people to Himself. We simply participate in loving obedience.

It’s been 16 years since I wrote this. I Still agree with most of it both Biblically and experientially. But stay tuned for some small tweaks!

Here’s an interesting up to day take on evangelism in the a Western Context in 2025

A Love Hate Relationship with Evangelism
LOST – They are not on an Island!
Evangelism: Methods or Majesty
Reaching the Far Lost, How would Jesus do it?
The Near Lost – Low Hanging Fruit
A Strategy for the Near Lost
Inside Out Witnessing
The Shocking Reality – Cold Contacts
Do Not Feed the Lost?
Leaders: Do the Math
A Summary of the Living and Discipling Among the Lost

A Book Review (#1)

A Book Review – “Hearing God, Developing a Conversational Relationship with God” by Dallas Willard

I really like this book! But, you better fasten your seatbelts! It is no light read and it will challenge your conventional thoughts about what it means to “hear God.” Dr. Willard is a Philosophy professor at USC and that fact comes shining through in his writings. His case for God carrying an ongoing conversation with us in our circumstances, the Scriptures and most prevalent, our minds, is compelling. Although reading the book is like climbing a small mountain, the view from the summit is well worth the effort. I highly recommend it.

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

Leaders: Do the Math

Living and Discipling Among the Lost – A Word to Spiritual Leaders

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; (Ephesians 4:11-12)The commander was covered with oil. He had been helping the mechanics fix a truck in the motorpool. But make no mistake; he realized that his greatest contribution that day was inspiration and team building, not his mechanical skills. Just like this young military commander, the spiritual overseer must have a firm grasp of his essential role as a leader. Certainly spiritual leaders practice the art of personal evangelism, but that is not their primary role. Their role is to equip those around them in the convictions and skills of leading men and women to Christ. It’s a matter of multiplication rather than addition.

The art of equipping and delegating is one of the hardest leadership principles to practice. We tend to value the work so much that we lose sight of the need for guidance and vision. We get busy doing the daily tasks and fail lead the troops into battle. Everyone has their place and the Kingdom advances when we practice our gifting and position as God intends.

Jesus understood this when He would not stoop to being an earthly king at the expense of being Lord and Savior of all (Jn 6.15). The Apostles understood this when they chose to prepare themselves to serve the people spiritual food rather than waiting tables (Ac 6.1-2). The Apostle Paul reminds Timothy not to allow the insecurities of youthfulness to interfere with his duties as a spiritual leader (1 Tim 4.12).

For those who oversee ministries, we need to remember that our leadership is our greatest contribution. Yes, we will model witnessing, the basic things of the faith, and never use our responsibilities as a cover for laziness or sin. But, we dare not forget that the Lord Jesus has not only entrusted us with the flock but there is a lost world to reach. The task is so daunting that we cannot afford to only practice personal spirituality. We must lead the people of God. It is God’s design. To do otherwise squanders the gifting of the Holy Spirit and short changes the Kingdom. Jesus didn’t just pray for fishers of men, He equipped them (Mt 4.19; 17.4,18). Responsible spiritual leaders will do the same.

It’s been 16 years since I wrote this. I Still agree with most of it both Biblically and experientially. But stay tuned for some small tweaks!

Here’s an interesting up to day take on evangelism in the a Western Context in 2025

Testimony 19: Out of the Nest

Chapter 19

“As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
(John 17:18)

In 1983 it was time to leave the safety of my spiritual nest at Ft. Campbell and the Lord sent me to Korea. Now there are a lot of reasons why soldiers don’t want to go to Korea but I only had one: sin. I had heard all the stories of returning GIs and I was terrified that I would undo all the work the Lord had done in the last three years. So, I made a covenant with God. I promised Him that I’d never be in the village after sunset (I imagined times of darkness would be the most perilous to my walk with Christ). This was tested the first night I was in country. My fellow Pathfinders heard I’d just arrived and were ready to take me out on the town. I had gone to bed early and when I woke to the pounding and yelling outside my room, it was pitch-dark. It was so dark and I had such bad jet lag I couldn’t find the door. Feeling my way around the walls, I apologized and told them I would just meet them in the morning. There was only one other time where I had the potential of breaking my covenant. I was out shopping and lost track of time. As I walked out of the store, I realized the sun was going down. I went into a full sprint, zigging and zagging through the crowd and spurted through the gate like a watermelon seed pinched between fingers. Whew, I made it! I kept my covenant with God and my time in Korea was one of the most fruitful times of my life.

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

Shout Out to the Nations

Thanks for reading the Blog. Hope it’s helpful in your ministry.

Please leave me your feedback by clicking on “comments” below.

Do Not Feed the Lost?

Living and Discipling Among the Lost – What are they hungry for?

Contemporary Christianity has made a huge mistake of not feeding the lost. We try to entertain them, trick them, and coax them into the Kingdom and when we mention the Lordship of Jesus Christ, they are “outta there.” One of the most prominent churches in America made the bold admission that their tactics were not working to help people truly experience spiritual transformation. Reason: they weren’t feeding them what they needed or they weren’t really spiritually hungry. In other words, you get what you pay for.

In our ministries, we are not looking for people who want to satisfy their spiritual appetite. Of course we lose some in the process, but it’s not because they feel like they were tricked. The wheat are separated from the chaff better when it is clear what you are inviting them to eat. If you advertise steak and serve up brussel sprouts, they have a right to be upset.

How did Jesus invite people into the Kingdom? Sure, He healed and fed people, but His message was always upfront and clear, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” (Mt 4.17) The people knew that following Jesus meant life changes. They understood there were expectations of obedience and lordship. The parables may have been mysterious, but there was no mistaking His call for radical life changes. And yes, He was very gracious at the same time. But you cannot deny the message of submitting oneself to the will of the Father. I think spiritual hungry people expect this message from us. The Holy Spirit has already bid them to repent and follow. Why would we remain silent and deprive them of the spiritual nutrients that will change their eternity? Why wouldn’t we get knee deep in the Bible and tell them everything about Jesus?

Ignore the signs! DO feed the Lost!