Communicating God's Love to a Hurting World!
Mobilizing the body of Christ globally to join Jesus in His mission, especially among the least-reached people groups,transforming lives, relationships & communities. Reaching the "Unreached People Groups" in the 10/40 window. Helping viewers to see the endless opportunities especially in this time of the Coronavirus,to help complete the Great Commission, whatever their interests and abilities are.
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Tuesday, January 19, 2021
Good to store some Joyful Songs in our Heart!
Good to store some Joyful Songs in our Heart!: Always good to store some joyful worshipful songs in our hearts to help us communicate with our LORD, day or night! The LORD is our strength.
Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Covid-19 and Easter Hope
By
Lauri Lemke Thompson
Thanks Lauri for the article!
“These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer
soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service
of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of
man and woman.”
So Thomas Paine wrote in 1776, but his words fit the
pandemic of 2020. The sacrifices you are personally making by following the
stay-at-home guidelines may not be as great as some who fought the American
Revolution, but we are at war against an invisible enemy – and you may truly
save many lives. So, first – thank you.
That said, many of us are feeling some anxiety. Little
wonder. According to Dr. Frank Minirth
and Dr. Paul Meier in their book Worry Free Living, “Anxiety is linked
more to the future, while depression is linked to the past. Depression is the
past superimposed on the present, and anxiety is the future superimposed on the
present.” Not knowing what will happen in the coming weeks and months with this
seemingly runaway virus quite naturally can bring anxiety.
Matthew 6:34 says “So do not be anxious about tomorrow.
God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time.” (The Living
Bible) This is sound wisdom and an utterly reliable promise, but conquering our
anxieties can be tough.
But What Will Happen?
Linda Dillow wrote a book called Calm My Anxious
Heart. In it she points out “Certainly we are to pray, plan and prepare for
tomorrow, but we are not to worry about what might happen….Walking with
God through today’s twenty-four hours is difficult enough.”
“It is tomorrow,” said F. B. Meyer, “that fills men
with dread. [But] God is there already. All the tomorrows of our life have to
pass Him before they can get to us.”
What a comfort to know that God wants us to toss our
worries onto His incredibly broad shoulders. In I Peter 5:6-7 we are told “Humble
yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due
time. Cast all your anxiety on Him for He cares for you.” (New International
Version).
Matthew 24:6 addresses our current situation and is
meaningful in a couple Bible versions. “See to it that you are not alarmed” is
the New International Version. In The Message it is stated thus: “Keep your
head and don’t panic.” But even more clear (or blunt?) is well-known Christian
Author Max Lucado’s unofficial interpretation in his book Fearless: “Don’t
freak out when bad stuff happens.”
Pollyanna and Chicken
Little
Further, Lucado advises: “Life stinks, but it won’t
forever….Avoid Pollyanna optimism. We gain nothing by glossing over the brutality
of human existence. This is a toxic world. But neither do we join the Chicken
Little chorus of gloom and doom. ‘The sky is falling! The sky is falling!’
“Somewhere between Pollyanna and Chicken Little, between
blind denial and blatant panic, stands the level-headed, clear-thinking,
still-believing follower of Christ. Wide-eyed yet unafraid. Unterrified by the
terrifying. The calmest kid on the block, not for lack of bullies, but for
faith in his older Brother.”
Franklin Graham of Samaritan’s Purse (the ministry
that set up the 68-bed emergency field hospital in New York’s Central Park for
Covid-19 patients) stated in several TV interviews “We want people to know God
still loves them. He’s not mad at them, and He wants to help them through
this.”
His beloved father, “America’s Pastor,” Billy Graham,
said it well in his booklet called “Victory: Preparing for Resurrection
Sunday” when he declared “God never abandons us when life becomes
difficult. He is always with us and wants to help us, even when things seem to
be going wrong.
“He does not guarantee to reverse every misfortune,
but if Christ lives in our hearts, we have His promise that nothing ‘in all
creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ
Jesus our Lord’ (Romans 8:39).”
“What a guarantee!” Reverend Graham went on. “Instead
of being fearful about the future, at Easter we can trust and believe that God
is working a purpose in our lives. We can have hope!”
Easter and Promises
Speaking of Easter, consider the words of Lee Strobel
in his book The Case for Easter: “If Jesus overcame the grave, He’s still alive
and available for me to personally encounter. If Jesus conquered death, He can
open the door of eternal life to me too.” (Strobel, a journalist who was a confirmed
skeptic about Christianity, doggedly researched the matter and finally
concluded its claims were true).
God’s Word, the Bible, offers so many great promises
to us in this extremely challenging time. Healthy fear keeps us washing
our hands and keeps us out of public places unnecessarily. Unhealthy
fear, though, may make us forget or doubt those great promises.
“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let
petitions and praises shape your worries
into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense
of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle
you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.” Philippians 4:6-7 (The
Message, boldface mine).
So stand strong. We need faith-filled courage for
these days. Not feeling courageous, you say? “Courage is simply fear that has
said its prayers,” according to Dorothy Bernard.
Friday, January 17, 2020
Why I Get Up in the Morning
To continue in my relationship with
God, through His Son Jesus Christ, so that
I can:
1.
Be close to Him
2.
Worship Him
3.
Be a fragrant offering to Him
4.
To be a reflection of God into the
world
5.
Be Holy as He is holy
6.
Show His love to the world…my family
and neighbors
7.
Be an encouragement to people who He
brings in my path
8.
Pastor Matts sermon on August 25th
2019 Prayer as Soul Shaping
Prayer As -Soul Shaping With God.
Praying regularly for others
My limitations do NOT limit what God
can do in prayer!
Colossians 1:9
9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,[
Praying for knowledge of God’s will through
all spiritual wisdom and understanding…
Praying to Live Worthy of the Lord
Colossians 1:10-14
10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you[a] to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
1
Bear fruit of the Spirit
2
Knowledge of God
3
Patience
4
Joy and gratitude
Bottom Line:
Living it out…not just knowledge or
words, but Blooming Where I am planted …now.
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Perspectives On The World Christian Movement: Class starting soon!
Why
Should I Attend?
God has a "world-sized"
role for every Christian in His global purpose.Whether people go to distant countries or stay at home is a
secondary issue. The primary issue is what most people are hungry to discover:
vision to live a life of purpose. Discovering that vision makes this course
valuable, and perhaps crucial, for any Christian.
What one Alumni is now doing!
Next step would be to see the closest location to where you live
If outside the U.S, there are locations around the world
There are even ONLINE courses that you can take at your convenience
Even Independent Study
An alumni perspective on "Perspectives"
God is on a massive Rescue Mission and we are invited to join Him!
Or "How to not waste your life" as John Zumwalt would say.
What one Alumni did and is now doing!
Find a class and register now! First 2 nights are FREE!
You can purchase the book and Study Guide as a preview of the course
See my TWEETS on Twitter
Tuesday, December 24, 2019
Planning for the new year-Trusting in the Lord!
Trust in the Lord with all your
heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will
make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6 English Standard
Version (ESV)
Pray, Plan and Prioritize...
But don't get hung up on planning...the LORD can intervene at any moment and you can change direction! Keep your ears open!
"You already know the ultimate destination of your journey: your entrance into heaven. So keep your focus on the path just before you, leaving outcomes up to Me" Nov 19th Devotion from Jesus Calling by Sarah Young.
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD'S purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21
We often hear the words, luck, fate, and providence.
Theologian Dr. R.C. Sproul. "God's sovereign providence stands over and above our actions. He works out His will through the actions of human wills, without violating the freedom of those human wills."
You found this page...by luck, fate or providence...?
As Oswald Chambers states : "The circumstances of a man's life are ordained by God. In the life of a saint there is no chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you cannot understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you."
So
Trust in the Lord with all your
heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will
make straight your paths.
Friday, December 6, 2019
Monday, December 2, 2019
Monday morning: Our work and our calling.
It's
Monday morning...and some of us are off to work or are we?
Maybe if we are believers...and attended church this weekend...we may be contemplating the message we heard. How important is that to us. Any connection to the other 6 days of our week?
Someone
once said that if we are doing what we are passionate about...it's not work!
Sunday
and Monday...any connection?
Our
work: How important is it to us?
Who are we really working for?
Who are we really working for?
Are
we worshiping our work and working at our worship?
Are we finding joy and peace in our everyday work?
Is this talk about finding peace confusing?
Are we finding joy and peace in our everyday work?
Is this talk about finding peace confusing?
How to find peace with God!
We
are called to God first and then to our secondary calling…which may be our job,
business, ministry or what we do in “retirement”
A word from The Call by Os Guinness
A word from The Call by Os Guinness
"Calling
is the truth that God calls us to himself so decisively that everything we are,
everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion,
dynamism, and direction lived out as a response to his summons and
service" P. 29
The Lord created each of us individually with different Spiritual Gifts, Passions, Abilities, Strengths and a unique Personality with different Experiences. When we know what they are and how they work together then we can be most effective in our families, church, community and the world. When we serve according to our SHAPE, we leave a legacy that gives glory to the LORD so when we stand before Him one day, we will hear, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
The Lord created each of us individually with different Spiritual Gifts, Passions, Abilities, Strengths and a unique Personality with different Experiences. When we know what they are and how they work together then we can be most effective in our families, church, community and the world. When we serve according to our SHAPE, we leave a legacy that gives glory to the LORD so when we stand before Him one day, we will hear, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
S.H.A.P.E
Spiritual gifts, Heart or passion, Abilities, Personality and
Experiences.
Read
a good book recently:
Answering
the Call: The Doctor Who Made Africa His Life.
From “The One-Talent People.” Christian Herald. Sept 1949.
P. 64
“Always
keep your eyes open for the little task, because it is the little task that is
important to Jesus Christ. The future of the Kingdom of God does not
depend on the enthusiasm of this or that powerful person; those great ones are
necessary too, but it is equally necessary to have a great number of little
people who will do a little thing in the service of Christ.”
“The great flowing rivers represent only a small part of all the water that is
necessary to nourish and sustain the earth. Beside the flowing river there is
the water in the earth-the subterranean water-and there are the little streams
which continually enter the river and feed it and prevent it from sinking into
the earth. Without these other waters-the silent hidden subterranean waters and
the trickling streams-the great river could no longer flow. Thus it is with the
little tasks to be fulfilled by us all.”
Some excerpts from: God’s Best for My Life by Lloyd John
Ogilvie
“What are we daring to attempt which could not be
accomplished without His strength and intervention? So often we plan our lives
around what we could do without Him on our own.
A sure sign that we are in communion with the Lord is that we are
attempting what only He can do? Can you identify that in your life?”
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