Spreading the Gospel

"Christian men are not to be used for anything but God. They are a set-apart people; they are vessels of mercy, they are not for the devil’s use, not for their own use, not for the world’s use, but for their Master’s use. He has made them on purpose to be used entirely, solely and wholly for Him."
- C.H. Spurgeon

. . . I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.
- 1 Corinthians 9:22 (NKJV)

“The Bible was not given for our information but for our transformation.”
― D.L. Moody

We have been called to reach people for Christ.

We have some options in reaching people for Christ.

Better yet, we have some open opportunities to reach people for Christ.

We can spread the Gospel:

• Vocally: By what we say
• Visibly: By what we show
• Virally: By what we share

Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! -1 Corinthians 9:16

5 Magazines for Ministry Leaders

I have been serving in ministry for nearly 15 years now.  I have served as a ministry leader for at least 10 years.  I have served as a leader on the church staff for just over 8 years now.

In all of these combined years of varied experience, I have learned a lot.  I have learned most from the Bible.  Whenever I find myself off track, I'll go into an intense study of the biblical books of wisdom (Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes) or the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).  In some cases, I'll go through both sets of the prophets (both minor and major prophets) or the various epistles of the New Testament.

I learn from the Bible, various books by Christian authors like Oral Roberts, Robert Schuler, Andrew Murray and C.H. Spurgeon, and many Christian publications.  As I grew as a Christian and leader, I worked my way through a variety of magazines and journals that make up the list below:

1. Outreach
2. Leadership
3. Relevant
4. Christianity Today
5. Charisma

Only 1 of them doesn't have a one-word title... hmmmm

Going Green for God

"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof..." - Psalm 24:1

The church of Jesus Christ can go green.  That makes sense.  It may not be easy to shift from traditional methods, but it is certainly worth the work.

Going green can do more than save the environment.  It can prove to be a cost-effective method for environmental stewardship.

Here is a list for going green with God:

• The Green Church
• God is Green
• 50 Ways to Help Save the Earth
• Green Revolution

Passion or Purpose

What's driving your pursuits?
Passion?
Purpose?
Which is it?

Passion is simply defined as "a powerful emotion." That is usually enough to get things started or to spark something spontaneous, but it may not be enough to keep things going.  You may need more than just the power of emotion driving you into action.  You very well need something beyond passion.

The definition of purpose is "the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists." Purpose gives a reason for actions.  Purpose does more than fuel and drive the person into action.  Purpose causes the person to continue to pursue his or her goals through the ups and downs of the various periods of life.

Perhaps, given the definition of purpose, that is why Rick Warren sold so many copies of The Purpose Driven Life.  With that in mind, perhaps it makes sense when we come across so many people who are trying to find their purpose in their lives. 

You do not discover your own purpose moving to Calcutta to be the next Mother Theresa.  That was her calling and purpose, not  necessarily yours.  Oddly enough, that makes a world of sense when you listen to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.  It was his dream, not each and every other person's dream.  It was his dream.  Too many people are chasing after other people's dreams and purposes, never looking at themselves and their own pathway.

Let your purpose drive you into pursuits that you can become passionate about in this life.  Let such a purpose force you to grab hold of a vision and not let loose until you have accomplished more than you ever imagined possible.

 

"Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible." ~St. Francis of Assisi

Growing in His Word

“Don’t wait to fast, read, pray, or to do anything else.” – Charles Finney

Use the Good Book to get back on track.

Let truth show you the way.

You need to pray over some things.  You just need to get into some deep prayer and let loose.  I have one word of advice for you, though.  You do not have to hurry when praying, but you surely need to hurry up and pray.  Allow God to draw you in nearer and nearer, closer and closer.

Spend some time connecting with the Lord.  Go to the Word.  Read and hear the Word of God.  Listen to sermon podcasts and the Bible dramatized on iTunes. 

Take some time to make things work for you, especially as you work towards serving God daily.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. - Colossians 3:16 (KJV)



Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.- Romans10:17 (NIV)
 
We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. -ColossiansNIV)
 
Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.- James 5:13 (KJV)

Each One Reach One

⁴⁰ Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. ⁴¹ The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). ⁴² And he brought him to Jesus. - John 1: 40-42 (NIV)

Imagine if we sought to grow our ministries one member at a time.  What if we sat aside the church growth theories that say otherwise for a moment? Think about what the Bible says about reaching others.  Take a look at Andrew's example.  Each believer can reach someone else.

I believe that everyone is not connected to everyone else, but every one of us is connected to someone.  We all know somebody who we could reach for Jesus and share about our personal experience and encounter with Jesus.  That's genuine growth.  It's based on relationships.

Train your members to reach out to other people.  Challenge each member of your congregation or your small group to reach twelve other people.  Make it doable.  Tell them and train them how to reach another person each month and bring them to your Bible study, prayer meeting or Sunday school class.  That's just one person per month.  That's three people per quarter.  Challenge them to do it based on their relationships.  If you have ten people in your ministry, you could potentially have 120 people touched by your ministry within the first year.  Imagine how much more that you could do through your people once they get comfortable doing such a mighty work.

Taking on The Messiah on the Move

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. - Mark 1:1 (NKJV)

 
The Gospel of Mark is an action-filled account of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.  It has oftentimes been referred to as the Gospel of Jesus in action or on the move.  It reveals Jesus' comings and goings, His teaching and doings.  The shortest of all four of the New Testament's Gospels, the Gospel of Mark shows Jesus in the midst of serving, performing miracles and preaching messages throughout the land.

 
Take this challenge.  Try reading the Gospel of Mark in one sitting.  If you cannot see yourself doing such a thing, try to get in throughout one single weekend.  It's only 16 chapters.  Even if you read a single chapter each day, you could finish the Gospel of Mark in its entirety in a little over two weeks. 
 
Reading may not be your thing either.  Try listening to the Gospel of Mark.  I often listen to the Bible over the Internet via sites like www.youversion.com.  I prefer the dramatic readings of the Bible.  That's just my preference.  You can even get a copy of the Bible on CD or downloaded to your MP3 or iPod, so that you can listen to it on your drive to work or while you work out or do the dishes.  Today's technology offers you many options.

 

Take in the Gospel of Mark.  Once you have taken it in, take on the Gospel of Mark.  See how you can serve with more sacrifice after experiencing the Gospel of Mark.  Make some changes to your approach to ministry and good works based upon what you read and what the red letters of the Gospel have stated as kingdom priorities.  Take it on and check yourself on how well you do in regards to the carrying out your calling of service in His name.