How would you fare if suddenly you became homeless because members of your faith were being persecuted? I probably would be thinking about securing a new home and keeping my mouth shut about what I believe. Not the early church! Acts chapter 11 points out that evangelism was at the forefront of the activity of those who scattered as a result of the persecution triggered by Stephen’s stoning.
The only reason why Christianity exists today is because down through the centuries courage was a quality exhibited by genuine disciples of Jesus Christ. Where are these courageous disciples today? Why are so many believers hiding in the closet about their faith? Why are so many powerless in declaring God's love even when regularly exposed to a high grade Bible-based teaching?
I’m at a loss for words but not discouraged. So, people like you and me must arise with a clarion call for believers to take their place in society and let their light shine before people so that glory is attributed to our heavenly Father. We must demonstrate true courage!
During this journey pray for your courage to grow. Pray for fearlessness to abide in your life so that you may sensitively and wisely share your story with others regarding the great things Jesus has done for you. If your work environment, as some bloggers noted, does not lend itself to sharing your faith, it means that you must create evangelistic outlets in your life such as volunteering with a non-spiritual community organization or integrating yourself in a non-Christian sub-culture like I do (I’m involved with triathletes via workouts, etc.). You have to go where the sinners are and not wait around for them to ring your doorbell and announce: “I’m a sinner and I want you to witness to me right now so that I will get saved.”
Establish a “hit list”—a prayer list capturing the names of the people who you’d like the Lord to save by using you and others to share His message with at key points in their lives. Look for practical ways to demonstrate God’s love and how that can be leveraged honestly and genuinely into evangelistic opportunities.
As a number of bloggers including Dinah and LaToya pointed out yesterday, praying for your loved ones and co-workers paves the way for opportunities to share your faith with them. LaToya commented that it seems like the more she prayed for her younger brother’s salvation, the worse his behavior became. Be encouraged, oftentimes the increase of someone’s bad behavior suggests that they are running from God and they think that the more they sin the quieter the voice of God (or His conviction) will be in their life. We must learn how to pray and praise God for the matter has already been done. You pray for them then you praise God for His answer.
Reclaiming your courage will certainly help others to see the grace of God at work in your life—a life of a modern-day saint.
Good Morning!
ReplyDeleteI recently had coffee with a dear friend and her husband "Ken" who are not saved. I began to talk about how much I enjoyed Christ Church and Ken started to make faces and comments about disliking organized religion. I spoke to him about Christ and how we worship Him so freely and purposefully at our church. He continued to talk about not seeing the point of going, not believing in church, etc. But I began to speak to Ken about the gift of salvation for his family. He and his wife have provided everything for their family-a wonderful home, private school, vacations, etc. But the question of salvation stopped him. At that point he shrugged his shoulders and said "keep trying, don't give up on me yet, I'll get there". The Holy Spirit had cracked the door and I have kept these unsaved friends on my prayer list!
Good Morning!
ReplyDeleteOne of the ways I'm telling others about the good news of Jesus Christ is by sharing this blog with my Facebook friends and fans + Twitter followers.
Thank you, Pastor Ireland for incorporating new media tools into your teachings about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Blessings to you and your family!
T.C. Coleman
Hello everyone,
ReplyDeleteI remember when I was a teenager, I would debate with God how I should die if I ever were to be persecuted the same way that the early church was persecuted, and I told him that I wouldn’t mind encountering immediate death, just no persecution nor any suffering either, otherwise I’ll be just fine. Of course things have changed now that I have other priorities and I have a better understanding of a lot of things. The lesson that I learned from today’s reading is that we as believers ought not to outcast those who do not fit our criteria of being saved. I think that some of us make it difficult for those willing to share the word of God much of a burden. The only two e-news that I read are Wall Street Journal and Huffington Post and each time I finish reading the piece, I would always go to the comment section to read the thoughts of other readers and you can see a negative display on how Christianity is viewed today and at time I have to admit, my mind races to how it would be if we were to go the way it was when the disciples were being persecuted, I ask myself would I be able to tell these people that God is the way to life, would I have the courage to do it which is the reason why I don’t mind losing my life for Christ as Apostle Paul said “to die is gain .“ As far as writing a list, I think it’s a great idea to pursue because once we start praying for the individuals on that list, I don’t think it will be hard to introduce Christ to them no matter the setting.
Hope everyone have a great day, be blessed.
wh
Thank you Pastor David for the prayer suggestions! It challanges me to create a 'hit list'. I should be specifially praying for more people to be saved than I currently am. At least in a name specific type of way. I generalize that type of prayer more than not. This greatly helps!
ReplyDeleteReading the blogs regarding LaToya's brother reminds me of something, as sometimes I see the same reaction from a dear loved one of mine. This can apply to so many aspects of our faith walks in life. Several years ago I had a vision. I saw an eye. As I wondered what it meant or represented, a hand appeared just below the eye pointing up to the eye. I believe the eye represented God, who is all-seeing and all-knowing. The hand represented direction and guidance. We come across situations in life that can and do look grim. We have to remember to keep our eyes on God and not our situation. With God ALL Things are possible, no matter how they may look to man! We don't necessarily have to deny the facts, just deny a negative outcome! For if we deny the facts we are taking away part of our future testimonies! God IS truely amazing and amazingly true. May He get all the glory due to Him!
Be blessed!
Greetings everyone,
ReplyDeleteI am truly blessed to be a member of Christ Church. Last Sunday I so enjoyed our spirit-filled service that I went home to share the experience with my son's nurse. Actually, I have been sharing our journey with all three nurses who take care of my son on a daily basis. I purchase the CDs and they listen to it with me. Well, as you can imagine, they are all there at different times during the week so I end up listening to the same sermon a number of times since I listen with all of them like it was the first time I was hearing it. The morning nurse is catholic, the evening nurse doesn't go to church (she came with my son and me to Christ Church a few times), and the weekend nurse is a Seventh Day Adventist. I presented each of them with an "Operation Take Back" booklet so they can take part in the journey. The morning nurse studies with me every morning and we read the Book of Acts Bible Chapters together and then have little discussions on the contents. She has now asked me to purchase the two books for her so she can have her own to take home. We're also reading the Purpose driven Life, by Rick Warren and she's very excited about all the things she's learning about Christ and how she should be living according to the Word. I haven't thought of my prayer list as a "hit list" until now, but I have a very long one. I have already learned that my focus needs to change from the everyday challenges of life to focus on eternal things. I haven't seen any tangible stolen stuff returning as yet, but I feel the changes coming because of how I feel inside. I'm getting my prayer life back. I'm not where I want to be yet, but I'm not turning back. We were created to please God and to give Him all the praise and glory for the things He has done for us. Praise the Lord!!!!
Good Evening!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't going to post again until maybe next Monday but when I saw the topic and began to read...I had to. Last time I spoke about how God opened an opportunity for me to talk about the love of God at work...well...on this past Tuesday, God opened yet another opportunity for me to talk about the grace of God at an exit interview for a client who had completed our program (she is a new believer in Christ) who felt burdened by the Law of Sowing and Reaping because of the life she had led. My boss tried to respond out of her faith, which is Buddism, agreeing about sowing and reaping but had nothing to compare to the grace of our God, so perhaps it has become food for thought for her as well. Praise God!! I have been praying for God to use me, send me, empower me...saying "Here I am...send me!!" Well, let me tell you something, I don't want to say I am overwhelmed but it seems like almost everyday I have been speaking to clients and staff (who seek me out) about God or His Word; but it has surprised me by its frequency. In addition, I have experienced a new boldness,a compulsion, to speak out about Christ. I'm not sure if this has any correlation but Monday and Tuesday are my fasting days. Last Monday was Love of God and this past Tuesday was Grace of God...LOL...what's next??! I am loving my God and this journey.
Blessings,
Cynthia