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This page is dedicated to bringing encouragement and insight to God's people and reaching the lost for Christ.
I have a favorite Old Testament verse that many will probably find odd: "Man that is born of woman is of a few days full of trouble. Job 14:1 The reason it is my favorite is because it helps to explain why there is so much suffering in my life and in the world. It can be my favorite bible verse because of my favorite New Testament verse: " In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33 Be certain that troubles will continue. But we can be more certain that when we put our trust in the Lord Jesus, we are able to overcome the troubles and trials and tribulations of this life.
From a heart of love and compassion share the gospel
From a heart of love and compassion share the gospel
Your Christian life may be the only Gospel they will know
Pray and put the results of your sharing in God's hands
Pray and put the results of your sharing in God's hands
As the wind blows we cannot see where it goes, so is the working of the Spirit of the Living God
Have you ever wanted to memorize scriptures to lead a soul to Christ? Let me share this 8 Steps to Commitment to Christ
Be sure to check out the Article Topics and Titles. It contains all of the Words of Encouragement links by Dates
"Be involved in preparing the next generation to know and serve the Lord."
Generation to Generation
Generation to Generation
Testimony from September 2015
I listened to a message preached by my pastor, Colin Peverall recently. In his message he used, and expressed the ideas in, the phrase “act generationally”. His message dealt with the subject, what does it mean to ‘act generationally’? As I listened, I was convicted by the question ‘had I lost the opportunity when my boys were growing up to act generationally with them’?
We saw to it that our boys knew the Lord both from our own examples as well as participation in a growing church. But did I impress upon them a major failing of the children of Israel?
As each successive generation of Israelites grew up and assumed leadership within the nation of Israel, the people of God grew further and further away from the God who had delivered them from bondage. In fact, for some of the generations of Israel we are told, “there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord.” Judges 2: 10
These words are an Indictment against the previous generation. While the previous generation might not have forgotten the great works and tremendous debt they owed. They did not adequately provide the next generation with reason and conviction to enable the next generation to continue to venerate the God who loves them. Somewhere in the process of living and dying, the people of God did not adequately prepare the next generation to know the Lord. The intimacy and reality of a day-to-day walk with the Lord was missing. Knowledge of the hand of God to deliver was not carried forward.
Being a member of the church is not going to keep you in the church. You have to be involved. You have to grow in your service to the Lord. If you are not involved it will be very easy to drift away. Being involved with the Lord is the only way to abide in him. Be involved in preparing the next generation to know and serve the Lord.
Ask yourself, what am I doing to prepare the next generation to know the Lord and carry forward the Word of the Lord?
It is the great acts of God, as well as the promises of the Lord that we must send forward. Even if you have no children of your own to raise you still have the Lord’s children to help raise. Selah
Pastors do you look for the next pastor who can take your place? Do you look for the next servant of God who will care for God’s children?
Teachers are you mentoring, praying for, and encouraging the next voice to proclaim the Word of the lord?
Elders are you actively pursuing God’s moving in the hearts of the next generation of leaders? Have you looked for opportunity to draw God’s next candidate into ministry.
I recall as a young man in Christ, ministers and deacons who would pull me aside and challenge me to pursue God’s service. Most of them wanted me to become a pastor.
I visit a lot of churches and too often it is the pastor who has the responsibility to reach the lost, lift up the helpless, encourage the weak, draw the next Joshua forward. But I am convinced that it is my responsibility as well as yours to “act generationally” and prepare the next generation to carry forward the work of the Lord. Selah
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Father, I thank you for the timelessness of your Word and your Promises. I pray you will use these words to encourage your children as they grow in their relationship with you. I pray that you will work in the heart of every person who does not know you as Lord to bring them to yourself, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
“we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.”
John 9:31
Prayer
Prayer
The Apostle James tells us that “the effectual fervent prayers of the righteous avails much” (James 5:16) KJV This has long been one of my favorite scriptures. It encourages me that my prayers can be very effective. There is, however, a condition placed on my prayers being effective. In order for my prayers to be heard and for my prayers to be answered I must be in right relationship with the Father. Righteousness is the prerequisite to seeing the hand of the Lord move on my behalf. Since I am not righteous by nature I must be made righteous. When I accepted Jesus’ death on the cross as the atonement for my sins, Jesus robed me in his righteousness; now the Father sees his son’s righteousness covering and cleansing me. I can now go boldly to the throne of God by faith knowing that God hears me when I pray.
We have the story of the man that was born blind whom Jesus healed. The spiritual leaders of the synagogue were both astonished and offended that Jesus was able to heal a person who was born blind. They were offended because Jesus had healed the man on the sabbath. The religious leaders could not accept that Jesus was sent from God let alone that he was the Son of God. They were enraged that he would break the sabbath by healing the man that was blind from birth. They pressed the man who was healed with questions trying to get him to say anything that they could use to condemn Jesus. What the man who was blind from birth said ought to be encouragement to all who have put their trust in Christ Jesus. He said, …”we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” (John 9:31)
My ability to be heard when I pray is not contingent upon my goodness or my righteousness; it is based on my surrender to the will of the Father. I am made righteous by the blood of Jesus and heard because I worship and am obedient to God. Later Jesus said to his disciples “if ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” (John 15:7)
We must absorb the Word of God that it might saturate us
This is where true effective prayer comes from. When the word of the Lord is abiding in us, we think more as he thinks, we see more like he sees, we respond more like Jesus. Our responses to the needs in this life are more in line with what the will of the Father is. We can then ask whatever we will because we are guided by the Holy Spirit who knows the mind of Christ better than we can ever know it while in this fleshly body. We must absorb the Word of God that it might saturate every part of us.
We must be willing to decrease that Christ in us might grow stronger. When we see the needs of lost humanity as Jesus saw, we will be moved with his compassion. It is just this sort of compassion in which we need to approach the throne of God on behalf of the lost. We can then be the intercessors who will ask and keep asking that the Lord of the harvest will send laborers into his vineyard.
Join me as we pray that the Lord of grace will send a new awakening into the church.
During the late 18th century and early 19th century two major revivals moved in different regions of our nation. From 1730s through the 1800s God heard the heart’s cry of saints who wanted to see his moving in their day. God did move and much of the American way of life was affected. God sent revival to parts of America.
We need another move of God throughout this nation before it is eternally too late. selah
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