Resource Library

Turmoil in the Air  

"And in those times there was no peace to the one who went out, nor to the one who came in, but great turmoil was on all the inhabitants of the the lands." 2 Chronicles 15:5

On Sunday morning in El Dorado, after worship, a burden of the Lord came on me as I kept hearing- "Turmoil in the nations, turmoil in our nation, and turmoil in our lives". We then spent about 10-15 minutes in heart-felt intercession for all three of these areas. That burden has remained, in ebb and flow ways, upon me to this day. 

The flow really came again yesterday as I read the news of the gruesome beheading of an American photo-journalist in Iraq with the threat of beheading another if we continue to bomb. And also how they had slaughtered thousands in the last months not to mention the abusing and raping of many women and children. Then I read more news on Ferguson, Mo. and the violence there. Turmoil, turmoil, there is more and more turmoil in the spirit-realm and in the natural-realm. 

I woke up this morning to a vivd dream of being on the run from militants with my family and a group of people. And this afternoon I just got off the phone with Lyle in West Virginia who called to tell me that he was calling his team to 3 days of prayer starting on Friday because of the intense state of things. 

So I am asking all of the New Life and Disciple Nations family and friends to commit themselves to an extra measure of prayer for the nations, our nation, and our lives this coming weekend. Let us ask for the Lord's divine wisdom and guidance in these tumultuous times. There is more coming beloved and it vital that the Lord's people be steady and at peace in the midst of the storm. Let us reject fear and stay on mission living and preaching the Gospel of Peace in the midst of a world at war.

Blessings,
Sam

Life Saving Station (A Convicting & Revealing Parable) 

On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur there was once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea, and with no thought for themselves went out day and night tirelessly searching for the lost. Some of those who were saved, and various others in the surrounding area, wanted to become associated with the station and give of their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews trained. The little life-saving station grew.

Some of the members of the life-saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. They replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building. Now, the life-saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they decorated it beautifully and furnished it exquisitely, because they used it as a sort of club. Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on lifesaving missions, so they hired life-boat crews to do this work. The life-saving motif still prevailed in this club’s decoration, and there was a symbolic life-boat in the room where the club initiations were held. About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boat loads of cold, wet and half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick and some of them had black skin and some had yellow skin. The beautiful new club was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside.

At the next meeting, there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s life-saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted upon life-saving as their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a life-saving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life-saving station down the coast. They did.

As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. It evolved into a club, and yet another life-saving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that sea coast today, you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are frequent in those waters, but most of the people drown.

Source: unknown

Boldness in the Blood 
Therefore brothers since we have CONFIDENCE to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus.. Hebrews 10:19

The Holy Spirit has been challenging me for the last couple months to let my roots of faith grow deeper in the revelation of the all-suffiency of the blood of Jesus. I, like others, can place my confidence in my own works, or guilt, or time of feeling sorry about my failure. The problem with this is that we begin to make less of the only payment that the Father has made for our sins which is the precious blood of Jesus. The Father is satisfied with the blood of his Son as the payment for our sins- but are we?

I ministered on this before communion on Sunday using phrases like:

 
 "We must stop believing that we have to 'do time' away from the Lord feeling guilty." 

"Run to Him dirty trusting in the blood not to fig-leaf hiding away from the Lord."

 "We must believe that the blood is more weighty than our sin."

 "Let us put a short-leash on our seasons of guilt."

 "We are never transformed by the Spirit when our hearts are condemning us."

Here is the 16 minute word that I pray will increase in you a confidence and boldness in your faith in the blood of Jesus as your only means of being forgiven and cleansed. 

I believe that every true disciple believes that Jesus is the most important person in their lives, that his salvation is the most important event in their lives, and that sharing this gospel with the lost should be the most important activity of their lives. But, because of the crippling work of fear, they rarely share this glorious good news with those that need it. 

Scripturally, the church(his people) are to be the great evangelist. In fact,  according to Ephesians 4:11,12 an Evangelist is to equip the saints for the works of ministry. It is the body of Christ that spreads the gospel in an ever growing grassroots movement that does not wait on a big event or big man to come to town to do evangelism. 

Sadly though the "great church-wide evangelist" is not on mission. I believe  that the problem does not lie in the lack of strategies or theological training among the church. No, the central reason is simply because of FEAR. The fear of man that is rooted either in the need for praise or the terror of rejection- drives much of what we do or do not do. Paul pleads in his epistles to his young ministers, and the young churches, to "fear not". Over and over he calls them to courageously embrace suffering and rejection in the ministry of the gospel for the glory of Christ. 

It is a spirit of boldness that we need. Give me a handful of disciples who are filled with the spirit of boldness anyday over thousands that are "theologically sound" but do nothing but talk about it with other believers. It was unschooled and ordinary men that turned Jerusalem and the rest of the world upside-down as they courageously proclaimed the gospel even in the face of death. 

The message this week was about overcoming fear in mission. Please listen, pray, and get out of the boat trusting Jesus to make a way as you share the best news on the planet with those that are perishing.