Discovering Your Uniquely God Given SHAPE

Another method for planting this large number of churches is to do so by non traditional means by starting house churches. In a house church a group of believers come together for worship in someones home.  They may or may not be connected to a mother church where they attend every other week or monthly.  House churches are led by non professional ministers.

There are several strengths of the house church. Many people today are more open to attending a Bible study in a home than in a church.  They are less expensive. House churches are harder for governments to control. They are smaller, and as such their attendees tend to be more involved in service.  Some house churches will grow and become more traditional churches, but many will not.  While most Christians do not think positively about house churches they are an excellent means for evangelizing a population.  As America becomes less and less Christian house churches will become more appealing and necessary.

14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” 16 But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” 17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. Romans 10:14–17

Pray for those who do not attend a church. Pray that God will call more Christians into the ministry of preaching His Word.  Pray that all those who currently preach His Word will become holy and bold in their proclamation and lifestyle.  Ask God to convict the hearts of believers to stat new churches whether through traditional or non-traditional means.

In 2008, 28 people successfully committed suicide in Bartow County. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, between 8 and 25 people attempt suicide after they learn of a death by suicide.

If you contemplate taking your own life please reach out to someone.  Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.  Suicide is also a selfish act.  If you know someone whom you believe is considering suicide get them some help, and let them know that you care for them.  The most difficult grief to overcome for surviving family members is grief due to suicide. If you know someone who has lost a loved one due to suicide let them know that they are not responsible for the actions of another and pray for them and love on them all that you can!

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. Romans 5:1–11

Pray for the hopeless. Ask God’s Spirit to reveal to the hopeless that their enduring suffering is an important step on the road to hope and rejoicing.  Pray that they will find their hope in Christ Jesus. Ask God to show you how to pray and minister to those you know and meet.

21 Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in a besieged city. 22 In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help. 23 Love the Lord, all his saints! The Lord preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. 24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord. Psalm 31:21–24

Ask God to show His wonderful love to Todd and all the teenagers in Bartow county who are contemplating suicide.  Pray for Todd’s parents and all those like them who are struggling with divorce and all of its many consequences. Pray that God’s Holy Spirit will show God’s mercy to Todd and his parents as well as all those in our county and world whom they represent.  Pray for the other 6,500 teens ages 15-19 who call Bartow county home. During your prayer time, ask God to awaken churches and the adults in them to become aware of and interested in the needs and cries for help which Todd and other youth are making each and everyday.

If you know a teenager whose parents are divorcing don’t just ask them how they are doing, take them for a hike, watch them play in their sport or school play and then take them to eat afterward.  Let them know that you care for them and that while they may not realize it you are there for them.  Show them Christ’s love don’t just tell them about it.  You will be surprised how quickly your concern and care will bring positive results to their life.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:34–40

It continues to amaze me at how many in American have more sympathy for their own pets, but refuse to take in individuals like Homer, or to become a foster parent.

Pray for the homeless of Bartow. Ask God to show you how to help them to have a home and hope. Check with the homeless shelter on ways to help. http://www.goodneighborshelter.org/history.html

Before they can hear about our Savior they need us to show them His compassion.

Each year, approximately 150 people die in Bartow county. Approximately 7 are infants, and 27 are deaths related to automobile accidents.

2 and he began to teach them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:2–12

Pray for the peace of God and the comfort of the Holy Spirit to rest upon Kathy, Elizabeth and Mason and all of those who are experiencing the loss of a loved one.  Ask God to use you to reach out to those who are grieving.  Make certain that your church is organized to minister and witness to those who suffer the loss of loved ones.

Pray that God will use their grief to draw each one who is grieving closer to Himself.  If you are one who is grieving allow Jesus and His church to bring comfort to you.

2 God [Elohim] spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord [Yahweh]. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God [El] Almighty [Shaddai] , but by my name the Lord [Yahweh] I did not make myself known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Exodus 6:2–4 (ESV)

Originally God revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty [El Shaddai].  He further reveals Himself to Moses, however, by His personal name Yahweh.  Why did God do this?  He needs no reason and He owes us no explanation, because He is God.  God is sovereign!

19 . . . I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.”   Exodus 33:19b (NASB)

We know God’s name only because he chose to reveal it to Moses. God’s name is only known to those whom He favors and loves.

13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.          Exodus 3:13-15

God’s personal name is not Elohim, or El Shaddai but is Yahweh.  This progressive revelation of God to man ends in Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the perfect and complete representation of God to man.  He is the Word living.  The Bible is the Word written.  Jesus is telling us this when he states:

16 . . . blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.  Matthew 13:16–17

All the prophets longed to know what we know about God through Christ.  Many people who loved God and lived righteously before Him would have given their fortunes to have access to the knowledge about God which we have at our fingertips in the Bible.  Do we understand what a privileged position we occupy?  I am afraid we take the special revelation we have concerning God for granted.

What precisely do we see and hear which so many others longed to see and hear? The good news about Jesus.  After being confronted about their message Peter and John explained to the rulers in Jerusalem that:

19 . . . “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:19b–20 (ESV)

What have you seen or heard?  For the special revelation which God has given to us to have any saving effect for others it must be shared. You and I as recipients of this special knowledge concerning Jesus are to bear witness of this truth to others. Before you can be a witness you have to have seen or heard something.  Do have any knowledge about God or experience with God about which you can personally testify?

The special revelation which God has given us is given to us for a purpose.  This revelation is to be used by us to personally experience God.  With this experience of God we are to inform others of this special revelation about God in Christ.

• Do you know about God and Christ?
• Have you experienced God through Christ?
• Are you sharing your knowledge of God and experience of Christ with others?

This is probably how God feels about us when we try to explain to him why we can not obey Him, or why the clear teaching of His word does not apply to us in our particular circumstance. I have found that too often much of the time I have spent in prayer was wasted by my feeble attempts to rationalize my sin and disobedience to God. I seem to become willfully ignorant of the lesson God taught Jeremiah.

4 Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” 6 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” 7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.” 9 Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” Jeremiah 1:4–10 (ESV)

Notice that God tells Jeremiah that He has known him since He was formed in his mothers womb. Further, God tells Jeremiah that He consecrated him and appointed him. The word translated consecrated means that God has set Jeremiah apart. It comes from the idea of being made holy. God has also appointed Jeremiah to be a prophet to the nations. This was a very strange idea to Jeremiah. His understanding of God did not expand beyond his own nation.

When you take the time to really think about it you realize how many similarities there are to God’s calling of Jeremiah and how God calls and sends Christians today. First, you understand that God has known you since your beginning. Furthermore, in your beginning God set you apart to be different from the rest of the people on the planet. He made you to be unique and in your uniqueness He wants to use you. Being holy to God means that you will be different, very different, and that is not simply O.K., it’s the way you are supposed to be. (If you are the parent of a teenager especially a daughter you need to drive this truth deep into their being).  Next, God has a specific task in mind for you. He called Jeremiah to be a prophet who brought the bad news of judgment to his own people and the people in every nation.

God has called each Christian to proclaim the good news of our sins being forgiven through the sacrifice of His son to all the people in our own family, town and world. Like Jeremiah we want to make excuses for why we cannot go.  Notice what God told Jeremiah. Negatively God tells Jeremiah and us, “Do not say.”  Many of us waste much time negotiating with God.  We try to convince ourselves that we can’t go, we can’t serve, or at least we can’t do it right now.  When you begin to bargain with God about these things remember He said “Do not say.”  Next, God tells us  “Do not be afraid.”  When we are honest about our motivations many of us do not obey God’s calling to tell others the truth about His son because we are afraid.  The thought of simply sharing our faith in Jesus with another person scares us to death.  Some fear what other people might think or say about us if we were to actually talk to them about spiritual things.

Remember God’s answer to Jeremiah “to whom I send you, you shall go! And whatever I command you, you shall speak!” (Why should I not be afraid?) “because I am with you to deliver you.” Our fear and refusal to be obedient in going and inviting others to place their faith in Jesus Christ reminds of the following story.

This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

Before we begin to negotiate with God we need to remember how foolish our own children seem to us when they attempt to rationalize and explain their own disobedience.  When we refuse to do what Everybody is supposed to do and what Anybody could have done then Nobody does it.  This means that the Somebody whom we were supposed to tell will not hear and that Somebody, is Somebody’s child, and Anybody knows that they might even be yours.

And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ Acts 13:22 (ESV)

We all know that David was not perfect. The Bible is careful to point out David’s human frailties and moral failings. There is one story about David which reveals that he possessed a truly generous nature.

24 But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them. 25 David built an altar to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then the Lord answered prayer in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.  2 Samuel 24:24-25 (NIV)

I have learned that it is easy to give away things which cost me nothing. Many of us are glad to re-gift presents from certain family members or friends. Such expressions mean little.

When we give of our own time, talent or treasure then we are practicing true generosity. Being generous in times of economic hardship may require more faith than giving during times of plenty. Today there are many needs, and churches and other charitable organizations are finding that their capacity to help is greatly hampered because people are no longer giving with the same generosity with which they once gave.

Could it be that as individuals we are more generous in our own minds than we are in reality? The following story illustrates how much easier it is to be generous in theory than in practice.

A pastor was visiting one of the farmers who was in his congregation. The pastor asked the farmer, “Jim, if you had 100 cows and God asked you for fifty, would you give them to Him?”“Oh Yes, I sure would, preacher”“If you had 100 horses, Jim and God asked you for 50, would you give them to him?” “Oh, sure I would preacher, if I had 100 horses and God asked me for 50, I would be glad to give them to him?” “Jim, If you had two hogs, and God asked for one, would you give it to Him?” “Now that’s not fair preacher. You know I have two hogs.”

There are many around us in true need. They need us to give some of what we have. All Christians need to be more like our heavenly Father who is the most generous of all giver

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 (ESV)

Spiritual leaders need also to understand that leadership brings with it great responsibility. God will require a price be paid when we do not obey his commands to us. God Himself addresses this requirement of spiritual leadership to Jeremiah.

17 But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. 18 And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. 19 They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.” Jeremiah 1:17–19 (ESV)

This text addresses four vital points of which every spiritual leader should be aware.

1. “dress yourself for work” Each of us who have accepted the role of leadership in the service of Christ must prepare to work and work hard. The ministry is not a place for those who wish to be kept by others, but should be occupied by those who are dedicated and determined to serve Christ whatever be the personal costs or sacrifices.
2. “arise” God’s servants must arise. Get up! Stand up! Too few in our generation are leading by taking a stand against sin before their own congregations and society in general. If you have a spiritual leader who has the intestinal fortitude to stand up for truth and stand against the sins of our age then pray for him, protect him and give him your support.
3. “and say to them everything that I command you.” The man of God must also be one who will speak up. When I have taught classes in preaching I tell the students that the three rules of public speaking are to stand up, speak up, and sit down, and that it is preferable to conclude these three actions before your audience finishes. The man of God, however, must always remember that his greatest audience is not the one to whom he speaks, but the one for whom he speaks. Absolute obedience is what He requires.
4. “Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them.” Those who stand and speak must also remember the high price which God will require if our fear of man ever becomes greater than our fear of God. Although opposition to us is certain, our protection is also certain. God promises to be with us and to deliver us.

God appoints spiritual leaders in our homes and workplaces as well as the church. Perhaps your vocation is not the ministry, but as a Christian your avocation is to be His service.

I am certain that the pain of losing an election may be great, and that giving a concession speech must be uncomfortable and unpleasant.  Each of God’s servants must realize that such pain and discomfort will pail in comparison, however, to our being dismayed by God because of our disobedience!

I pray that each of us will obey so that none of us will ever be dismayed before Him.