Article for Ministers: Guard the Gates

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The expression of guarding the gates really has to do with guarding the mind. As noted in the previous message, John Bunyan wrote another classic although much less recognized than Pilgrim’s Progress entitled The Holy War which tells the story of Mansoul being captured and taken over by Diabolus because of the gates being compromised. That same plan is still being effectively carried out in our generation. People of every kind and status within the church have a responsibility to not let this kind of thing take place. This is especially true of those who are actively called into the ministry. If the shepherd can be toppled, the sheep will scatter.

It was explored how that study allows a man who serves a church to guard his mind. While that is a good measure to take up, there is another crucial “guard” that we have to recognize. It is the aspect of prayer. Of all the disciplines involved in a Christian’s life, prayer is the most difficult one to maintain conversely it can be one of the most joyous and powerful tools we can find in our spiritual arsenal. A preacher must maintain regular habits of communion with God in prayer. If a minister is not careful he can come to the place in which he will neglect his place of prayer because of his attention to the Kingdom. He may have all kinds of grand truths rolling through his soul because of the constant exposure to the Word. He can be so busy with various meetings, discipleship of new converts, and counseling of those who are in the throes of some dilemma of life, and obligations to duties of the organizational stripe, that he can entirely neglect his prayer life. In fact a minister is more likely to omit his praying than a new convert who has just come in to the church.

Diabolus loves to get the men involved in ministry to fall to the temptation of substitutes for prayer. Sermons on prayer, reading books on prayer, attending prayer conferences, and hearing sermons on prayer can never take the place of prayer. One can even come under the belief that church attendance, praise, singing, giving, and doing measures of physical labor at church can be a valid substitute for prayer. What soon happens is a tendency to resort to all of these things to move us into a position for revival without true heart-felt prayer.

Pastoral prayer is a great biblical concept and it has great authority. There is an ingredient of spiritual authority that comes to life when a pastor will discipline himself to prayer for his people. From the outset, I have to tell you that this is NOT an easy task to do. Prayer that is truly heart-felt and sincere rarely takes place (for me, perhaps not others) when we just decide to get on our knees and begin to pray. There has to be some stimulus of preparation that is involved in it. There are useful things that you will learn to use to help put your mind into a vein of prayer.

There are times when reading books on prayer will be very helpful to put you into a mindset of prayer. Some of the ones that I have regularly gone back to frequently and year after year are listed below:

E. M. Bounds Complete Works on Prayer—There are eight books in a single volume and are very rich and motivational toward opening my heart for prayer. The Necessity of Prayer, The Essentials of Prayer, The Possibilities of Prayer, The Reality of Prayer, Purpose in Prayer, The Weapon of Prayer, Power Through Prayer, and Prayer and Praying Men.

Leonard Ravenhill on Prayer—Ravenhill’s material is becoming increasingly rarer to find in bookstores these days. He was a staple for many of the preachers who attended the Deeper Life conferences scattered around the nation in the 1970’s. There have been times that I have read just a page or so of Ravenhill’s material and found it incredibly rich in preparing my heart and mind for prayer. Particularly helpful are his two books entitled Revival Praying and Why Revival Tarries. A recent biography about Ravenhill entitled In Light Of Eternity by Mack Tomlinson is a very inspirational book.

Wesley Duewel—This author was one of those that I was encouraged to try sometime in the early ‘90’s when I went to Because of The Times. I have found much value in the books he wrote, Mighty Prevailing Prayer and Touch The World Through Prayer. Not only will these books inspire you to pray, it will inspire you to preach on prayer.

Another means of putting my heart in a bent toward prayer is listening to sermons. There are some sermons that I have heard over the years that are almost worn out because I have listened to them so much. You have to be careful about listening to them too often or they will become so common they lose their ability to touch you. However, David Fuller’s The Master Key of Prayer (1986), Anthony Mangun’s Passion In Your Prayers (1994), and anything that Vesta Mangun has ever done on prayer are sermons that will inspire your prayer life.

Prayer is a place of surrender but once that surrender takes place, the wellsprings of heaven seem to burst forth and the glory of God is declared. But Diabolus wants to scale the gates by causing you to abandon your post in your prayer closet. If he can make you appear to be a man of prayer but not really be given to prayer, he will do everything he can to make this happen. If he can make you impatient with the results of prayer, you will finally give in and quit praying. Can I tell you this? The work of the Kingdom means a lot of weeding, watering, and waiting! What we have to understand is that ministry is going to take you longer than you thought, cost you more than you had planned, but you will be surprised by what happens in the end!

Prayer is not very glamorous and it is very hard work. But to the man who will give himself to a life-long persistence of prayer, he will make the most of his calling. We have to pray because of the condition of our heart. Prayer empties the heart of its cares, anxieties, and pressures that attempt to choke us. We have to pray because we know that the answer is beyond our human ability, talent, and strength. We have to pray because it is the key to divine direction. By actively taking up the prayer mantle, we find our relationship with God being empowered and strengthened. When that happens, we find that old man beginning to be changed into the image of Jesus Christ. Conformity to his image will cause us to have to endure some necessary pressure.

I have no doubt that the pastors who read this blog have done this multiple times in their tenure where they serve. I call it “walking the pews.” What I mean by that is going into the empty sanctuary whether in the day or in the night and walking the length of each pew and praying for the people who sit in those slots every week. Because people are creatures of habit they mostly sit in the same place year in and year out. It can be very useful to pray for these people during this time. As you pray for them there are unexpected crosses that will be thrust onto your own spirit as you contemplate the calamities that people have to navigate through. Troubled financial situations, marriages under pressure, wayward children, health issues that debilitate, and the all out assault of pressure and stress are all scenarios that people drag to church with them. Add to all of these things the need for a heightened measure of spiritual life and you soon discover the real meaning to pastoral prayer. If you as the pastor are not praying for them, then who will do it?

Pastoral prayer will also shape your soul. I am sure that where you serve that everybody is going in the same direction and that everybody fully supports everything that you are doing. However from the seat I currently occupy, I have my share of critics, skeptics, and maligners. Trust me I have prayed imprecatory prayers on every one of them until one day (thankfully) God turned my agitation with them into compassion. I begin to feel sorry for them! I have to say I almost couldn’t believe it when that shift began in my own soul. Furthermore, it would have never occurred had I not been “walking the pews.” Suddenly the Lord turned my aggravation with them into empathy because I saw them for who they really were. So now instead imprecatory prayer has been replaced by intercessory prayer and in some I see a change but sadly in some I can only see a hardening take place. It is situations like this that you realize that prayer is something that does indeed guard the gates.

Pastoral prayer will cause you to pray over your preaching too! In fact, you ought to lay hands on the pulpit and ask God to turn it into an altar that all human performance, talent, education, pride, ambition, and personal vendettas can be gutted and sacrificed on. Don’t waste your pulpit on frivolous and unimportant matters. Ask God for your heart to be emboldened so that you will have clarity of thought and the courage of conviction when you lead the church to worship through the act of preaching.

Sometime ago, I purchased a little book called The Valley of Vision, which is a collection of Puritan prayers, by Arthur Bennett. One of those prayers called “A Minister’s Preaching” I copied and wrote in the front of my Bible. I share it with you and think you will be blessed by it.

My Master God,

I am desired to preach today,

but go weak and needy to my task;

Yet I long that people might be edified with divine truth,

that an honest testimony might be borne for thee;

Give me assistance in preaching and prayer,

with heart uplifted for grace and unction.

Present to my view things pertaining to my subject,

with fullness of matter and clarity of thought,

proper expressions, fluency, fervency,

a feeling sense of the things I preach,

and grace to apply them to men’s consciences.

Keep me conscious all the while of my defects,

and let me not gloat in pride over my performance.

Help me to offer a testimony for thyself,

and to leave sinners inexcusable in neglecting thy mercy.

Give me freedom to open the sorrows of thy people,

and set before them comforting considerations.

Attend with power the truth preached.

and awaken the attention of my slothful audience.

May thy people be refreshed, melted, convicted, comforted,

and help me to use the strongest arguments

drawn from Christ’s incarnation and sufferings,

that men might be made holy.

I myself need thy support, comfort, strength, holiness,

that I might be a pure channel of thy grace,

and be able to do something for thee;

Give me then refreshment among thy people,

and help me not to treat excellent matter in a defective way,

or bear a broken testimony to so worthy a redeemer,

or be harsh in treating of Christ’s death, its design and end,

from lack of warmth and fervency.

And keep me in tune with thee as I do this work.

Other articles you might like

Guard the Gates - Part 1

Early on in my days as an RN, I greatly enjoyed working with patients who had come through multiple trauma situations. Even when I was in nursing school, I would frequently spend my evenings at work as a patient care tech, in the Emergency Department or in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. The reason was because these areas were generally the hubs for patients who had multiple trauma insults to contend with. Then when I graduated from nursing school, I went to work in the SICU and it was there that I found a niche specifically with neuro-trauma and the other injuries associated with the brain and the spinal cord.

There have been numerous times that I have seen patients that hardly had a mark on their body but had been dealt a massive blow to the head to the extent that they never recovered. In fact, far more than I would like to have liked, we would send them to long-term care facilities basically in a very obtunded or comatose state. Never again would they function normally and be able to assume even the most basic of daily functions of living. A perfectly healthy body but with horrific brain injury that disabled them.

John Bunyan wrote another classic besides Pilgrim’s Progress. It was a book called The Holy War. The focus of the story was the capture of a city called Mansoul. In it Diabolus (the devil) has taken it and the battle rages as the Prince Emmanuel works to recapture it. The way it was overcome was because the gates of the city had been compromised. Diabolus and his wicked imps had traversed it by taking advantage of the Eye Gate and Eye Gate which are symbolic of the use of the senses to cause the capture of the city.

It is imperative that a minister guards the gates of his mind. He is constantly under the assault and duress of the devil and because of this, our mind must be worked on very diligently to prevent the capture of it. Don’t be surprised at the tares, which may loom among the wheat because this is the way it has to be. In fact Paul cautioned the ever-vigilant servant when he expressed the fact that there must be heresies to grow like clover in a pasture. The reason is for the church to be approved by God (1 Cor. 11:19).

[ read more...]

Guard the Gates - Part 1

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Five Things Every Pastor Should Be Thinking About

The word 'pastor', or any other form of it, occurs only nine times in the Bible, and once in the New Testament.

We find this reference in...

Ephesians 4:11

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

The Greek word for pastor is, "poimen," which simply means a shepherd. The Hebrew word for pastor also means shepherd.

In modern day church culture, a pastor has also become much more than that. Unfortunately, the pastor has taken on every part of the five-fold ministry himself, thereby taking on offices not intended for him. This has led to much confusion and frustration for many who are pastors or feel led to become a pastor.

In modern vernacular, a pastor has become ' a one man, do it yourself, even though I am not really qualified to, kind of leader.' As Lee Stoneking stated, we have become a 'pastor driven organization.'

With that in mind, the very first thing that every pastor should consider is:

1. Is my office of pastor fulfilling God's role for a pastor?

A pastor is primarily a shepherd, somebody who cares for, protects and provides for every sheep in his flock.

· He is also the overseer of the flock.

· He is one who has experience.

· He must have a ready mind.

· He must manage the affairs of his flock.

1 Peter 5:2

2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

As the shepherd, the pastor can also serve the role of the teacher. The pastor feeds his sheep through the teaching and preaching of the word.

Acts 20:28

28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

The Word of God is our 'bread of life', the pastor must be ready and able to teach and relate the scriptures to every member of his flock.

There isn't any one man who can fulfill the modern-day role of a "pastor." You can only fulfill the role of pastor as God designed -- as part of the five-fold ministry. Otherwise you will fail God, yourself, and most importantly, all of the people that you lead.

You need help, you can't do it all alone. If you want to succeed and grow your church you must operate as a pastor in the scope of the five-fold ministry.

Ephesians 4:11-13

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

As a pastor in this era of the church, you will have to be the one to re-instate the offices of the five-fold ministry in your church, it is up to you, nobody else will do it.

[ read more...]

Five Things Every Pastor Should Be Thinking About

The word 'pastor', or any other form of it, occurs only nine times in the Bible, and once in the New Testament.

We find this reference in...

Ephesians 4:11

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

The Greek word for pastor is, "poimen," which simply means a shepherd. The Hebrew word for pastor also means shepherd.

With that in mind, the very first thing that every pastor should consider is:

1. Is my office of pastor fulfilling God's role for a pastor?

A pastor is primarily a shepherd, somebody who cares for, protects and provides for every sheep in his flock.

· He is also the overseer of the flock.

· He is one who has experience.

· He must have a ready mind.

· He must manage the affairs of his flock.

1 Peter 5:2

2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

As the shepherd, the pastor can also serve the role of the teacher. The pastor feeds his sheep through the teaching and preaching of the word.

Acts 20:28

28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

The Word of God is our 'bread of life', the pastor must be ready and able to teach and relate the scriptures to every member of his flock.

You need help, you can't do it all alone. If you want to succeed and grow your church you must operate as a pastor in the scope of the five-fold ministry.

Ephesians 4:11-13

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

As a pastor in this era of the church, you will have to be the one to re-instate the offices of the five-fold ministry in your church, it is up to you, nobody else will do it.

[ read more...]

Reasons For Financial Difficulties

According to the latest statistics, over one-half of all families in America are experiencing financial difficulties. This includes single parent homes. Most people have financial problems, but don’t know why!

In order to be aware of the financial difficulties one has and know what causes them, a person must educate himself to the reasons for the difficulties. The following are a list of reasons that most people find themselves in financial difficulty.

FAILURE TO FOLLOW SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES. The Bible is full of guidelines regarding financial principles. In fact, one-half of all parables and one out of six verses in the New Testament deal with stewardship. Get your Bible out and start studying. Ask your pastor for more information. See a Christian Financial Counselor for assistance. You will find great guidelines and principles in the Word of God.
FAILURE TO IDENTIFY YOUR PRIORITIES. Just exactly what do you want? More things or better financial stability? Prioritize your desires and needs and stick to it.
NO DISCIPLINE! That one horrible word causes us more problems than anything else in the world. We need to exercise discipline in every phase of our life, especially when it comes to discipline! Discipline yourself to limit unnecessary purchases and wasting money. Discipline yourself to set down once per month to analyze your finances. Discipline will be the greatest thing you can establish in your life. Work diligently with disciplining yourself.
FAILURE TO ESTABLISH GOALS. A person who has no goal is a person without direction. A person without direction is going…nowhere! To solve your financial difficulties, you have to establish a clear goal. Where do you want to be one year from now; five years from now, etc.? Write your goal down and work toward it.
NO CONTROLS. This compares to discipline, however, it means to have written controls over your spending. Write down what your limits are. Review them frequently.
FAILURE TO ESTABLISH A BUDGET. A budget is not a nervous breakdown on paper. It is a clear cut guideline of where your money comes from and how it is to be spent. It only takes about 1 hour per month to maintain a budget so that you can control the process of knowing where your money is and how it is spent. Don’t negate the importance of a written budget…it will be the greatest factor in helping you get your finances under control.
UNABLE TO CONTROL IMPLUSIVE SPENDING. If you don’t follow the direction of your budget and discipline yourself, you will be unable to stop spending when you see that item that you just must have. Don’t spend any unnecessary money until you discuss it with someone. You must control your spending if you ever hope to get ahead financially.

[ read more...]

Reasons For Financial Difficulties

FAILURE TO FOLLOW SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES. The Bible is full of guidelines regarding financial principles. In fact, one-half of all parables and one out of six verses in the New Testament deal with stewardship. Get your Bible out and start studying. Ask your pastor for more information. See a Christian Financial Counselor for assistance. You will find great guidelines and principles in the Word of God.
FAILURE TO IDENTIFY YOUR PRIORITIES. Just exactly what do you want? More things or better financial stability? Prioritize your desires and needs and stick to it.
NO DISCIPLINE! That one horrible word causes us more problems than anything else in the world. We need to exercise discipline in every phase of our life, especially when it comes to discipline! Discipline yourself to limit unnecessary purchases and wasting money. Discipline yourself to set down once per month to analyze your finances. Discipline will be the greatest thing you can establish in your life. Work diligently with disciplining yourself.
FAILURE TO ESTABLISH GOALS. A person who has no goal is a person without direction. A person without direction is going…nowhere! To solve your financial difficulties, you have to establish a clear goal. Where do you want to be one year from now; five years from now, etc.? Write your goal down and work toward it.
NO CONTROLS. This compares to discipline, however, it means to have written controls over your spending. Write down what your limits are. Review them frequently.
FAILURE TO ESTABLISH A BUDGET. A budget is not a nervous breakdown on paper. It is a clear cut guideline of where your money comes from and how it is to be spent. It only takes about 1 hour per month to maintain a budget so that you can control the process of knowing where your money is and how it is spent. Don’t negate the importance of a written budget…it will be the greatest factor in helping you get your finances under control.
UNABLE TO CONTROL IMPLUSIVE SPENDING. If you don’t follow the direction of your budget and discipline yourself, you will be unable to stop spending when you see that item that you just must have. Don’t spend any unnecessary money until you discuss it with someone. You must control your spending if you ever hope to get ahead financially.

[ read more...]

When You're The New Pastor

New Pastors often make elementary mistakes when they assume the pastorate of a church. Even though you’re now the pastor, you’re still the “new kid on the block.” Listed are some strategies to employ during the first year of your new pastorate.

Earn confidence by showing competence in decision-making.
Focus on people first – programs second.
Make no major changes the first year.
Promote health through loving the people.
Tackle the most critical problems one at a time – line them up single file.
Respect culture – each church has its unique history.

[ read more...]

When You're The New Pastor

Earn confidence by showing competence in decision-making.
Focus on people first – programs second.
Make no major changes the first year.
Promote health through loving the people.
Tackle the most critical problems one at a time – line them up single file.
Respect culture – each church has its unique history.

[ read more...]

Winning People Long Term

Most pastors would sacrifice everything they have to know a sure way of winning people long term. The truth is, most of us have personally won very few people that are still with us to this day. I have looked around my church recently, and I could find only two men in our church that I have been personally involved in winning to the Lord.

Winning these men actually began about four years ago. When I say long term, I am talking about a period of time of at least two years, preferably more. During that time I have been a witness to many more people than these two. I have baptized many more than that. I have taught bible studies to dozens of people. Many have received the Holy Ghost. Yet there are only two that have stayed in the church long term. Why only two? Why not more? Is there something wrong with me and my approach? How can I improve in this area? They say that hindsight is 20/20. During this article I want to go back in time to see what it was that worked, and what it was that didn't work.

The first thing that I can say without a doubt is that you must have a passion and a love for people. If you don't, they are going to sense that within a very short amount of time, and they will be gone. We must understand that it can be a very lonely time when somebody comes into the church. They are often leaving behind most of everything that they know and love. The Bible says...

Luke 14:26

26 "Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters — yes, even one's own self! — can't be my disciple.

Luke 14:33

33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

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Winning People Long Term

Luke 14:26

26 "Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters — yes, even one's own self! — can't be my disciple.

Luke 14:33

33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

[ read more...]

Are You Taking Care Of Your Home?

There is truth in the saying that you live life in forward motion but you understand it looking backward. I know for myself I would certainly have done many things differently had I the opportunity to do things all over again. However, like everyone else, you only get one chance at this circle of life.

Those who have a teaching father or mentor have an inside edge on doing things right the first time . . . if they have the willingness to listen and apply Godly advice to their life and decisions. Unfortunately, such is not the case for most individuals.

Leaders are a unique breed. They are fueled by passion. They feed off the energy of accomplishment. The adrenaline can be addictive. It is not uncommon for leaders to be so enraptured by the doing that they lose track of their state of being. Many people who succeed at leadership therefore fail at the more important things in life such as family and personal development.

The scripture asks, "And what shall a man profit if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?"

The best time to consider the impact of leadership upon you and your family is now. It cannot wait any longer. Today needs to be the day that you do what is best for those you love the most.

Ponder this sobering thought. At the end of your days who will be there to weep over you? Who will carry you to your final resting place? Who will bury you and weep afterward over regrets and missed opportunities? The answer is your family. It won't be those you neglected your family for.

Ponder another sobering thought. If your spouse or one of your children died today would you bury them with regrets over missed opportunities? If you are like most leaders the answer probably is yes. Please don't say this can't happen to you. It can.

A few years ago I landed at a large airport. Soon after deboarding I noticed multiple ministry colleagues in the area. As I spoke to them they informed me they were there to meet another colleague who had been on an overseas mission trip. He was to land soon and they had to give him the sad news. His wife was killed in a tragic automobile accident on her way to the airport that day to pick her husband up from his missions trip.

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Are You Taking Care Of Your Home?

The scripture asks, "And what shall a man profit if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?"

The best time to consider the impact of leadership upon you and your family is now. It cannot wait any longer. Today needs to be the day that you do what is best for those you love the most.

[ read more...]

Storm the Gates - Part 1

Last week, time was spent on the Barnabas Blog with a series of posts called “Guard the Gates” and how important that our minds are in this spiritual battle that we are involved in. Late last night, I was mulling over the next series of things to write about that might bring a little inspiration to those hearty souls who are involved in ministry. During that time of productive meditation, I was drawn to another theme from Bunyan’s The Holy War that sort of lodged in my spirit.

Early on in the taking of Mansoul, Bunyan pulls us in with the majesty of his word pictures when he tells us that Captain Resistance was one of the chief men of the city who had great influence. As he tells us of the approach of Diabolus in attacking the Eye Gate and Ear Gate, Captain Resistance gets up on top of the walls of the city. From that high point, one of the deadly archers of Diabolus shoots him off of the wall with an arrow to the head. Obviously the word picture gives us the idea that Captain Resistance is a godly pastor who is preparing to shout his warning from the top of the wall. When he goes down, the whole city soon falls to the evil hordes of Diabolus and his minions.

After the capture of the city, Prince Emmanuel determines that he will attack the city in the same manner that Diabolus managed to breach the place. He will attack by the Eye-Gate and the Ear-Gate; however, Prince Emmanuel determines to put a huge amount of energy of his attack into the Ear-Gate. So begins the journey of recovery for Mansoul. The four captains are all preachers whose voices will assault the Ear-Gate so the citizens within will be able to turn the tables on Diabolus.

• Captain Boanerges—He was the leader of the others. He was the strongest of all of them and his first lieutenant was Mr. Thunder. They all wore black and the insignia on their uniforms was three lightning bolts. In all four companies were ten thousand men.

• Captain Conviction—His first lieutenant was Mr. Sorrow. Their uniforms were pale and their insignia was the book of the Law that issued a flame of fire.

• Captain Judgment—His first lieutenant was Mr. Terror. Their uniforms were red and their insignia was a burning fiery furnace.

• Captain Execution—His first lieutenant was Mr. Justice. Their uniforms were also red and the insignia had a fruitless tree with an ax lying at the root of the tree.

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Storm the Gates - Part 1

• Captain Conviction—His first lieutenant was Mr. Sorrow. Their uniforms were pale and their insignia was the book of the Law that issued a flame of fire.

• Captain Judgment—His first lieutenant was Mr. Terror. Their uniforms were red and their insignia was a burning fiery furnace.

• Captain Execution—His first lieutenant was Mr. Justice. Their uniforms were also red and the insignia had a fruitless tree with an ax lying at the root of the tree.

[ read more...]

The Path to Freedom

Despise not the day of small things.

How do you build a church?

First you build a man. – Thou are Peter and upon this rock will I build my church. If Peter did not mature, the church would not grow.

· God has chosen to build his church upon people.

· He has chosen to use your life to build His church in the village you are from.

· If you do not grow, your church will not grow.

· This is why it’s important for you to study God’s Word.

· If you do not pray your church will not pray.

· If you do not have a genuine love for God, then your church will not have a genuine love for God.

· If you do not have compassion on the lost, your church will not have compassion on the lost.

· Your church will become a reflection of you.

Don’t be so quick to blame your people if they are not bringing someone to church with them.

· Don’t be so hard on them if they are not reaching out to their neighbors.

· Realize that a church most often, does what they see their pastor do.

· If you want your church to grow, be a soul winner yourself.

· If you want your church to reach out to others, be someone who reaches out to others.

· By your example, teach them to reach others.

· By your example teach them to win the lost.

Then you begin laying a foundation.

· You invest in some people to stand beside you.

· This time of building is not glorious.

· This time of laying a foundation is not one that gets the attention from everyone around you.

· Other Pastors are not going to stand up and take notice when you are building the Church’s foundation.

· But understand a building can be no larger than the foundation,

· And you cannot build upon something that is not there.

You will not have a strong stable church that is growing if you do not have a strong stable foundation to support it.

· So you begin to invest yourself in some good people whose love for God us unquestionable.

· Some people who will stand beside you, no matter what comes against the church.

· Some people who know your vision for the church and are willing to allow their lives to be built upon.

· You build that foundation. You build that foundation strong.

[ read more...]

The Path to Freedom

Despise not the day of small things.

How do you build a church?

First you build a man. – Thou are Peter and upon this rock will I build my church. If Peter did not mature, the church would not grow.

· God has chosen to build his church upon people.

· He has chosen to use your life to build His church in the village you are from.

· If you do not grow, your church will not grow.

· This is why it’s important for you to study God’s Word.

· If you do not pray your church will not pray.

· If you do not have a genuine love for God, then your church will not have a genuine love for God.

· If you do not have compassion on the lost, your church will not have compassion on the lost.

· Your church will become a reflection of you.

Don’t be so quick to blame your people if they are not bringing someone to church with them.

· Don’t be so hard on them if they are not reaching out to their neighbors.

· Realize that a church most often, does what they see their pastor do.

· If you want your church to grow, be a soul winner yourself.

· If you want your church to reach out to others, be someone who reaches out to others.

· By your example, teach them to reach others.

· By your example teach them to win the lost.

Then you begin laying a foundation.

· You invest in some people to stand beside you.

· This time of building is not glorious.

· This time of laying a foundation is not one that gets the attention from everyone around you.

· Other Pastors are not going to stand up and take notice when you are building the Church’s foundation.

· But understand a building can be no larger than the foundation,

· And you cannot build upon something that is not there.

You will not have a strong stable church that is growing if you do not have a strong stable foundation to support it.

· So you begin to invest yourself in some good people whose love for God us unquestionable.

· Some people who will stand beside you, no matter what comes against the church.

· Some people who know your vision for the church and are willing to allow their lives to be built upon.

· You build that foundation. You build that foundation strong.

[ read more...]

Money Matters - Stewardship Is Critical

God provides for us so that we might in turn protect what he has given us. Our God entrusts us to live within our financial means and ability. To live outside this ability, jeopardized the provisions of the family.

God owns everything but he gives us the use of it all. As we can be further trusted, he entrusts us with more. We become the managers of his blessings and provisions. If we cann't be trusted with what we have, how do we expect God to trust us with more? The management and care of God’s provisions is critical to future blessings.

According to Matthew 25:15-27, God expects dividends and a return on his investment. If we do not properly care for it and squander it, then we can expect to be cut off from the continued blessings of God. Luke gave us a clear indication of this in Luke 16:10 as he stated that the person who is faithful in little things is an indicator of faithfulness in larger things.

While earthly things are temporal, we still have to live here on earth. God gives us everything we need to live, survive, and enjoy the fullness of life. We must care for it with all diligence.

[ read more...]

Money Matters - Stewardship Is Critical

While earthly things are temporal, we still have to live here on earth. God gives us everything we need to live, survive, and enjoy the fullness of life. We must care for it with all diligence.

[ read more...]