All posts tagged: ministry

Not by might nor by power

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After Israel returned from their 70 year Babylonian exile- God raised up a prophet of restoration. His name was Zechariah. His ministry was to encourage and mobilize God’s people to accomplish a task that they had begun – but lost the momentum for completion. I’m I talking to anybody today who God assigned a task to accomplish but you lost your momentum? Due to adversed circumstances, demonic opposition, or jealous people – you lost your momentum. God says, get ready for acceleration… He said to tell you that it will not happen by might, nor by power. Might represents – a collective of super smart and innovative people. You’ve assembled a team of gifted leaders and very talented people – God says, you did good – but there’s another source. Power represents – the one superstar, the show stopper, the headliner, the gifted speaker, the talented musician. You thought, if we can only get him, if we can only get her – it’s gonna be a game changer – but God says you did well …

Living Life On Assignment

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A LIFE LIVED ON ASSIGNMENT IS THE MOST DANGEROUS THREAT TO THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS Our text is found in the book of Mark chapter 4:35ff “That same day, after it grew dark, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake.” Leaving the crowd behind, the disciples got into the boat in which Jesus was already sitting, and they took him with them. Other boats sailed with them. Suddenly, as they were crossing the lake, a ferocious storm arose, with violent winds and waves that were crashing into the boat until it was nearly swamped. So they shook him awake, saying, “Teacher, don’t you even care that we are all about to die!” Fully awake, he rebuked the storm and shouted to the sea, “Hush! Be still!” All at once the wind stopped howling and the water became perfectly calm.” Mark 4:35-37, 39 TPT Everything Jesus did while here on this earth He did on purpose and with intentionality. He live a life on Assignment. When Jesus said …

5 Way to help grow the membership of your church

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INTRO: One of the most difficult places to minister and build a church is in Rural America. There are varied and complex factors that contribute to this difficulty. UNIQUE & DIFFICULT FACTORS Take for example the lack of stable and competent volunteers. The economic difficulties of a small town. The frequent need for members to relocate for a new job. In a small town there is no telling what your congregation is going to look like from Sunday to Sunday. Families come, families move, hopefully for them, to a better job, housing or school. The membership in most churches in Rural America is aging. These are the folks who despite their age do most of the heavy lifting. If there is community outreach – bake sale, fireworks fundraiser, or movie in the park – these older folks are there. But ‘most’ of them are not necessarily active in sharing their faith or inviting friends to church. The only friends they know are already Christians. Than there is the chronic problem of church hopping, church skipping …

What fits you

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Have you spent you life trying to fit in, fit into places, fit into styles, fit into ministry. Are you trying to be something you’re not so that you can feel valued? Well, you don’t have to be something or somebody other than yourself. God has found something special, and He has put it together so that it fits you… You are uniquely gifted, positioned, called. So step into what fits you, because when something fits, you’ll never want to take it off…  

Little rules that keep churches little

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Rule #1: No Coffee in the Sanctuary There are different reasons why churches come up with this kind of rule. Maybe they are concern that the carpet or seats will get ruined by spilled coffee. Maybe it’s the false notion that eating or drinking in God’s house is irreverent. Maybe it’s the excuse that it is distracting to see others drink a cup of coffee in the house of God. Whatever the reason, in my opinion – it is completely ridiculous. Would you feel the same if I brought a bottle of water into the sanctuary? Would you really be distracted if I took a sip of water from my water battle? I don’t really think so. I am sure some of these folks mean well. They don’t want spills, distractions, irreverence etc…  Like the 89-year-old woman in my congregation who consistently asks visitors and church members to take their coffee out of the sanctuary. Unfortunately, well-meaning people always act out of a misinformed, zeal without knowledge, religious spirit with no basis in the gospel. Quite …

Where do you feel the closest to God?

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I met with a friend a few days ago. He took me out for some Mexican Food at a place call Sol Mexican Grill. The food is amazing there. At the end of of our wonderful time together, I asked him the following question: “My church is not growing, what else do I need to do? He looked at me and said, “I don’t know! I don’t know! What kind of answer is that? I thought to myself. “There is a lot of stuff you need to do, and all of them are equally important. But, there is one thing I would focus on the most,” He added. At this time he proceeded to tell me a story about a friend: “My friend went to Italy for vacation and he came back very excited about his visit. So I asked him what excited him the most on his trip. He said, it was a visit to one of the historic Cathedrals in Rome that blew his mind. He told me he had never felt that closed to …

Prayer Covering for the traveling Minister

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So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:9‬ ‭ESV I prayer for the traveling Evangelist, the Key Note Speaker, the Motivational Speaker, the christian business man! and the missionary on furlough. Every man and woman of God, either on a plane, driving the highway, resting at a hotel or a motel. For those on the frontlines advancing the kingdom, Lord I pray for a divine covering over their lives. If they are married, Lord keep their families safe. Father, I prayer for your favor and provision to rest upon their lives. Lord, destroy every plot and plan of the evil one over their live. Help each one of them to resist the devil, and fight every temptation. Draw each one of them to yourself. Help each one of them to be vigilant, prayerful, watchful. Bless the work of their hands and may your Kingdom come and your will be done in and through their lives – In Jesus’ Name. Amen!

Sprinkled for greater works

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The Reference 1 Samuel‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬ NLT “Now the LORD said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.” 1 John 2:27 NLT “But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie-just as it has taught you, abide in him.” The meaning The word “anoint” means to rub or sprinkle on; apply an unguent, ointment, or oily liquid to. Persons in the Old Testament were often literally anointed with oil. For example, priests were anointed for their special service to the LORD (Exodus 28:41). Literal oil would be applied, but as a sign of the Holy Spirit upon their lives and service. The oil on the head was only …

From Southwest with Love.

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I would like to first of all ask you to kindly take some time at end of this post, to share your pleasant or not so pleasant experiences – church hunting or just visiting for the first time. As a pastor, I don’t get the chance to visit other churches. Simply because I have to attend and lead mine every Sunday. But from time to time, when I’m away church traveling, I put it on the top of my list. It is at this time that I feel how uncomfortable it is for people looking for a new church or just visiting one. To say the least, my last two visits were really bad. I was in Nashville,  Tennessee visiting a church and almost felt invisible. It wasn’t that people weren’t talking among themselves,  it seemed like they were too focused on who they knew. I stood alone for about 15 minutes just next to the pastor who briefly looked at me, than turned away and continue talking with this group of five guys. After …