Facebook Status Tidbits

A collection of Facebook stati:

The Great Commission is not the Great Suggestion

love to fish as much as you love to catch

The more we love God the more we have a capacity to love people

mom has been converting people to facebook...we should apply this method to evangelism

Are you seeking to know the will of God in some particular matter? I would suggest that your first response should be that you ask this simple question: “Will it glorify God?” The answer to that question will provide you with much of the guidance you may be seeking.

Often, the glory of God is overlooked or neglected because of our focus on other things when really all we must seek is just that, God's glory!

Live; I wanna live inspired. Die; I wanna die for something higher than myself. Live and die for everyone else. The more I live I see, this life's not about me.

Dreaming up a disciple making church

Hope's not giving up

A Christian who is not sharing his/her faith is NOT living a "Good Christian life."

I am still so rough around the edges

t is not about the situation, it is about God...God requires faith and puts "God-sized" events/circumstances in front of us SO THAT we will depend more on Him...it is for our relationship with Him, not about us or what we can do for Him...but it is about our relationship with Him

one thing humans have over the animals is the 7th day

weird thought : wouldn't it be a waste if I dropped a "stolen" piece of pizza (my brother's) on the ground? Lose:Lose for the victim and the thief ....lol

“We've got to stop finger pointing...finger pointing gets us nowhere... steve!”

Prayer; What God says is far more important than what I say....it is about adjusting me to God, not aligning God with my plans and thoughts....

Relationship with God is far more important than any plans you create for Him

postmodernism is more of a threat to atheists than it is to Christians. I mean atheism is founded in modernism...there could be a new "new atheism" founded in postmodernism easily though, if there is no truth, there is no God

research is what grad students do instead of dating

All because of Jesus I am alive

I'm alive because I'm alive in You

thank you for the cross

learning that life is not about me

somewhat conflicted but have no control so I just relax and pray. God is good

the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith

You have to wrestle against the things that prevent you from getting to God, and you wrestle in prayer for other souls; but never say that you wrestle with God

If we do not sacrifice the natural to the spiritual, the natural life will mock at the life of the Son of God in us and produce a continual swither.

It is not a question of giving up sin, but of giving up my right to myself

the thing for me to do is to work out what God works in.

Let us not keep Jesus a secret

I have deliberately to give my sanctified life to God for His service, so that He can use me as His hands and His feet.

Thoughts about myself hinder my usefulness to God. God is not after perfecting me to be a specimen in His show-room; He is getting me ready so He can use me.

I am called to live in perfect relation to God so that my life produces a longing after God in other lives, not admiration for myself.

My goal is God Himself . . . At any cost, dear Lord, by any road." "At any cost, by any road" means nothing self-chosen in the way God brings us to the goal.

Lord I just don't understand this strange creature called man, who thinks he lives by his own hand. But I know there is no life away from you

I have to learn that the aim in life is God's, not mine. God is using me from His great personal standpoint, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him

Let go, there's nothing you can hang on to. give up expectations and let tomorrow tell its own story.

The circumstances of a saint's life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance.

The passion of Christianity is that I deliberately sign away my own rights and become a bond-slave of Christ. Until I do that, I do not begin to be a saint.

We have the idea that God rewards us for our faith, it may be so in the initial stages; but we do not earn anything by faith, faith brings us into right relationship

He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him

by the supernatural miracle of God's grace I stand justified, not because I am sorry for my sin, not because I have repented, but because of what Jesus has done

The great essential of the missionary is that he remains true to the call of God, and realizes that his one purpose is to disciple men and women to Jesus.

It is a shameful thing for a Christian to talk about getting the victory. The Victor ought to have got us so completely that it is His victory all the time

one thing God wants of us, and that is our unconditional surrender

It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God; but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things

God created the world out of nothing, and so long as we are nothing, He can make something out of us

old enough to know but too young to care

our spiritual relationship is not as much step by step; rather we are either obedient or we are not. Quite black and white.

God made His own Son to be sin that He might make the sinner a saint. wow

the summing up of Our Lord's teaching is that the relationship which He demands is an impossible one unless He has done a supernatural work in us.

For a man's ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all his paths. The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him...he will die for lack of discipline...

Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.

much Christian work has never been disciplined, but has simply sprung into being by impulse! In Our Lord's life every project was disciplined, nothing impulse

The warfare is not against sin. The conflict is along the line of turning our natural life into a spiritual life...not easy!

The true nature of the life in the actual whirl is the deliberate giving up of myself to another in sovereign preference

You can never sanctify to God that with which you long to satisfy yourself

although there is no greater tragedy than someone who dies without Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

There are times when our peace is based upon ignorance, but when we awaken to the facts of life, inner peace is impossible unless it is received from Jesus.

Are you more devoted to your idea of what Jesus wants than to Himself? If so, you are likely to hear one of His hard sayings that will produce sorrow in you.

Sanctification is not my idea of what I want God to do for me; sanctification is God's idea of what He wants to do for me

Have you reached such an intimacy with God that the Lord Jesus Christ's life of prayer is the only explanation of your life of prayer?

There's a divinity that shapes our ends." A Christian is one who trusts the wits and the wisdom of God, and not his own wits.

The things that happen do not happen by chance, they happen entirely in the decree of God. God is working out His purposes.

Capacity for love

The more we love God,

the more we learn to love our Christian brothers,

the more we love God and our brothers,

the more capacity we have to love our lost friends,

the more we learn to love our lost friends,

the more capacity we have to love even strangers we have never met.

It all starts though with our love for God and builds from there!

Body of Christ

The Church is on a mission with Christ, the head of the Church (not Pastor Bill, the elders, or lay leaders) i our world to carry out the Father's redemptive kingdom purposes.

No one individual has the total vision of God's will for a local church.

When the Church comes together, it is vital that the counsel of everyone is included.

God places members in the body as it pleases him. God made us mutually interdependent.

Apart from the body, I cannot know God's will for my relationship to the body.

Every believer has direct access to God and the church comes to know God's will when the whole church is on the same page and understands what Christ, the head of The Church is saying and asking. Not just what a pastor is saying.

A spiritual gift is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit at work in and through a person's life for the common good of the body of Christ.

The Holy Spirit decides to give assignments and enables spiritual leaders to accomplish His work.

God puts spiritual leaders and members in the body where he wants them to be.

The body is not complete without all the spiritual leaders and members God has given the body.

Members of the body should have equal concern for one another.

Spiritual leaders and members of the body have different assignments from God for the good of the whole body.

Right relationships with God are far more important than anything else. God does not add members to the body by accident. He builds the body to match the assignments.

Every single person at Cross Pointe has a place in the church. Every single person at Cross Pointe has a spiritual gift that the Lord has given you through the Holy Spirit.

As a member at Cross Pointe, we love you and we need you at Cross Pointe. You are essential for the common good of the entire church, because together as a whole we can know the Lord's will together if our relationships are right with God.

One body part cannot function properly away fro the rest of the body. An eye without a mouth or eyes is useless.

Similarly a body without an eye makes life incredibly difficult. That is why every member is so important. God puts each person in a local church for a mighty purpose to use the Gifts he has gifted each with.

Christian Isolation

It is true as McRaney states on page 198 that, “the highest level of motivation for evangelism is love for God."

Unfortunately, this (along with many other statistics) shows that Christians in America lack the passion to be godly and love God as they should.

We have lost sight of proper priorities in life. God calls us to "love the Lord your God with all of our Heart, soul, and mind." (mt. 22:37)

My personal problem is isolation... I am calling it a problem not a barrier, because it is my own fault. Labeling it a barrier, to me seems like pushing the blame on uncontrolables. I know better than that, because I know that I can do something in my life to address this problem.

I am glad and humbled that McRaney straight-forwardly calls me out by saying that Isolation is my selfishness. I am selfish and enjoy the fellowship of other believers. There is nothing wrong with that in of itself, but when we are blocking our own movement from growth it is a problem. We should spend some of this "fellowship" time together sharing the Gospel together, through servant evangelism, door-to-door evangelism, inviting non-Christians to join us in our fellowship at home or church...so that they see the love of Christ with us.

When I shelter myself from the world, I am disconnected. Some of the best experiences I have ever had with other Christians and with God have been the times of brokenness and challenge. Times when I had a passion to reach the lost and I was being challenged daily to share my faith with other Christians.

Accountability in evangelism is one the best tools to avoid isolation. Two or three guys or gals should meet together regularly not only for Bible study but also for sharing the Gospel. Talk about and pray for the oppurtunities in real life, but also make oppurtunities intentionally whether you are going door-to-door or if you simply just have a get-together at your home and invite your lost friends there.

We need a passion for God and a passion to be godly. Amen.

Keep your eyes open for God at work

I have been reading The Unexpected Journey by Thom Rainer. The book is about people from 12 different faith backgrounds came to find and know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

The testimonies and stories of faith are revealed via interviews conducted by Thom, his wife and occasionally other staff members.

The book is a fun read because the narratives. There are details about each faith and each persons story on how they found Jesus Christ.

My heart has really been humbled and yet excited by reading these stories. One key I have been reminded of by these stories is that God is always working! Even when we think that are neighbors or friends are lost causes, we should not give up on them.

Be on the look out for where God is at work. God placed Christians in each of these respective lives on purpose to share Christ's love and the Good News.

Simply showing Christ's love to a neighbor you know is in need by serving them with a gift, food, merely talking to them or even prayer if God is pushing you to serve. The simple love of service can really open the doors to the lost person's heart and prepare them for the Gospel.

Scary statistics

Some upsetting statistics from my Seminary Evangelism class. I do not recall the exact source but I believe these numbers are from Barna Research Group and the Southern Baptist Convention :

USA total population increased 11% in last ten years; church membership declined 9.5%

Church attendance is declining 10% over the past 7 years

Evangelical Church failed to gain additional 2% of population in the past 50 years.

No county in America has a greater percentage of churched people since a decade ago.

Half of all churches in America last year did not add one new member via conversion.

Churches are closing their doors....

1900 -27 churches for every 10,000

1950- 17 to 10,000

2004- 11 for every 10,000

We lose 72 churches per week or 10.27 per day

Gain 24 churches a week, 3.4 a day

Net loss of 48 week and 6.85/ day

USA is the Largest post-Christian nation.

It is the 3^rd largest unchurched nation.

USA Lead world in all crime categories

North America is only continent where Christianity is not growing, in fact other Countries have sent Christian missionaries to us, when we once sent Christian missionaries to them!

13^th (some ranked us even as high as 4^th) highest receptor of missions nation

Fastest growing affiliation is “not religious”

(Canada + US) is only 3 t o5% truly evangelical

Bill Easum-estimates that in American churches 60% median age of 60 or higher

sin is not a disease

We cannot "cure" sin with the Gospel or with any words we say.

To say that Jesus is the cure for sin is also limited and devaluing the actual thing that Christ did do.

Christ died for sin. Sin requires a rebirth not just a cure. Sin is the entire essence of who we are as 

we come into this world, spiritually dead. Sin required death of Chrsit. And His death gives us new 

life.

The Question

I recently listened to podcast by Apologetics.com featuring apologist and author Greg Koukl who recently authored the book called Tactics. In this book Greg offers several great approaches to talking to people in a way that will lead to spiritual conversations and possibly sharing yor faith with them.

The podcast did not offer everything that is in the book but briefly went over some of the important topics in the book.

One thing that really stands out from the podcast is the simple use of the question.

A lot of Christians are not sure what to say or what to talk about in order to bring a spiritual conversation, some Christians are just afraid...

but the use of questions is an amazing thing.

First it puts the burden of proof on the other person. Second it makes you look like a good guy, you care and are asking great questions and are letting them share thier prespective. Thirdly it is safe. They are relational. They encourage your relationship with others. 

Questions can be leading. can be investigative, or can be curious. If your friend says they do not believe in God for instances...instead of being afraid and feeling like you have to prove God, simply ask "What do you mean by God?" or "How did you come to that conclusion?"

Let them do the explaining...then after they have shared you can be ready to offer your own expirience or opinions in a kind but evangelistic manner.

I plan on getting this book and posting more about this book on my blog eventually. But check out the book Tactics. And the podcasts at Apologetics.com 

REFUEL your relationship with God

I'm reading the book Refuel by Doug Fields...
And I am enjoying this help and practical book.

I love how Doug writes the same way that he speaks. His personality is the same even in his writing, not a lot of authors can (or even try) to express the same sense of humor in writing that they use in their real verbal life.

So far the book has been very helpful. It has confirmed a lot of thinks I have been thinking about, doing, and teaching about myself personally. I hope Doug does not mind me spilling the beans, but the approach to connecting with God is really simple. First we must STOP, then BE QUIET, and MAKE A CONNECTION WITH GOD.

There are a lot of things in our lives that we live that keep us busy, a lot of times we use this busyness as an excuse for not finding time for God. The issue is not our busyness but it is easy to use that as the excuse really our priorities are flawed or we are not managing our time properly to truly live out our priorities.

So Doug tells us to STOP...even for just a few minuets or seconds through-out the day and recognizing God as Lord. Put Him first, seek Him, pray, and read the Word of God....

but the first step of STOPPING can be difficult because of the lives that we live. Stopping does not mean giving God the left overs, we must STOP because if we really want to make a connection with God we must surrender all of our attention to Him. He uses an illustration of getting gas. We cannot fill our car up with gas while it is still moving or even running....we have to STOP the car before we can connect to the pump.

Servanthood Evangelism

“People are more than twice as likely to allow a person to share their faith when evangelism is combined with simple acts of servanthood.”

Servanthood Evangelism is intentionally sharing Christ by modeling Biblical servanthood.

The great ideas for servant evangelism are numerous!

Check out this website for some ideas!

Here are some thoughts:

Walk the streets of the community offering to change burnt out light bulbs for free and share the light of Christ

Change the batteries of fire alarms because of the love of Christ

pass out free water at a sporting event

Do a gas buy down...for a few hours at a gas station offer to pay the station .25 for every gallon pumped in 2 hours. The gas station sells the gas 25 cents cheaper, the customers are happy and you get a chance to talk to the customers about why you are doing this!

Bake cookies for visitors and visit them. The principle is do not just invite the community to come to your church, instead bring the church and love of Christ to them!

Community-driven: cook food for or mow grass for a particular community or a particular set of families, no strings attached.

Do not participate in a "church sports league," do participate in a community/open/secular league.

People will ask "why are you doing this?"

This is the essence of servant evangelism and this is the opportunity to share the Gospel and God's love!