by Mary Kelly
I sense this is the time when we, the church, need to be intentionally and wisely investing our time, talents and resources into His Kingdom work. As Paul explained, let us set our eyes upon God's goal and run with persevearance the race set before us. Dare to put all you are and have into the hands of God who is able to do far greater things than one can imagine. Offer to give Him your “fish” and “bread and watch Him transform them into a banquet for His Kingdom on earth. The heart of Command Two is to reclaim for Christ through prayer evangelism all that was lost including people, cities and institutions. Jesus' work is finished, as He has reconciled all things (Col. 1:20) to Himself. We believe in God's desire to work through prayer so that every student, school, business, marriage, child, mother, father, brother, sister can be reclaimed. Let us deliberately invest ourselves and agree with God so that we can reclaim what He has redemmed. We need to be people who will use our energies to become reflections of Jesus in all that we do. Pray that we come together in one accord as we dare to believe God for transformation!
Can the Church Contain God?
by Bjorn Lervik
Does God live in the sanctuary? Does his Presence hover over the altar, as it did over the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies, in Moses Tabernacle? Where can we find God?
Does He hot live in his people? Are we not his vessels? Therefore when we go to work, don't we bring his Presence with us? Didn't Paul preach, “Christ in you, the Hope of glory?” Didn't he also say, “greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world?” We’re called to be the “salt of the earth,” because the earth no longer tastes good. We’re called to be the light of the world, because in the world there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Your witness has greater impact than you realize. God wants to impact your work station. Pray that He will use you in a mighty way.
Pray with me: “Father, open my eyes so I may see the opportunities around me. Give me wisdom and words to reveal Your Presence.”
In Jesus Name, Amen.
By Tom & Sue Rooney
This past year, the Lord has been working on our hearts, giving us a vision for reaching the lost He has placed all around us. It began with a conference in Sioux Falls last April featuring Ed Silvoso, who taught on marketplace evangelism. We called a plumber to do some work in our house not long after that conference, and his message was still very fresh in my spirit. When the plumber began work, my thoughts immediately went to praying prayers of blessing over him.
As he worked, I visited with him, learning he had come from Nicaragua, and that he had a wife and a young son with Downs Syndrome. I sought the Lord for direction on how to minister to this young man, and could see how troubled the was. The only thing I god was, “Ask him if you can pray for him.” I thought that was just my mind, becuase I had been asking a lot of strangers that question.
The plumber left to get some parts, so I spent some time in serious prayer, seeking the Lord for a word or something. But I just kept getting the same thing, “Ask him if you can pray for him.” When the job was done, and we were sitting at our kitchen table to handle payment, I said to the plumber, “I think God is telling me I’m supposed to ask you if I can pray for you. Is there anything I can pray for you about?”
He stopped what he was doing, started to cray, and said, “When I was out getting parts I told God I knew I didn't deserve to ask him for anything, but I wanted Him to show me if there was any way I could ask you to pray for me.” When I asked him what he needed from the Lord he just said, “I just want to get closer to Jesus. I’ve been away form Him for a long time.” We prayed, and God touched him in a special way.