I have just been reading about Oswald. J Smith who became a Christian just over a hundred years ago in Canada. He was a sixteen year old who went on the train with his younger brother to hear a well known preacher. Times have changed. Today it would be likely that the local journalists might sneer at what was preached in the churches. In 1906, Dr Torrey’s (the preacher) words were published word for word every day in the newspaper. Oswald’s mother was very pleased that her son wanted to go to the evangelistic crusade. She did not tell her boys until later that she wrote to Torrey asking that he would pray that her sons might be converted. Today many people, especially the young, turn up at a Christian meeting without the encouragement or prayers of their parents.

The two boys, staying with their aunt, attended the final eight meetings of the crusade. The preacher taught about  Jesus dying on the cross for our sins.  Oswald remembered hearing Isaiah 53 emphasized: “But He was wounded for MY transgressions; He was bruised for MY iniquities(Sins), the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5-) This was an Old Testament prophecy about Jesus dying for us- wretched sinners. We are all separated from God through our sin that deserves to be punished. Jesus took our punishment on Himself as He died a painful death on the cross.

Oswald J. Smith was raised my a mother who so wanted her kids to become strong believers that she wrote a letter to the preacher to pray for them. No doubt they attended church regularly with their family, but the mother knew that church attendance was not enough. It was essential that they should have a conversion experience: recognizing their need for forgiveness, faithfully submitting to Jesus as Lord:  beginning a brand new life in Christ.

At the end of one of Torrey’s sermons, the brothers went up to express their desire to receive Christ, to become children of God. To start with Oswald felt like a “chunk of lead”. Later he recognized that this was the power of Satan pulling him back. Do we realize that we are in a spiritual battle and that the devil is happy for us to believe in Jesus but not for us to receive forgiveness and to be filled with the Holy Spirit? If you are in the habit of attending church, but you have not received forgiveness and the infilling of the Holy Spirit, do not continue to be satisfied with your condition. If you were needing help in the sea you would not merely look at the life boat, you would get in, if you had any sense. We need to understand our need for a savior and let Him save us as we step forward in repentance and faith, with a thankful heart, for we  can never be good enough for Him: we can never earn our salvation.

Oswald J.Smith describes His conversion: “Then suddenly, it happened. I cannot explain it even today. I just bowed my head, put my face between my hands and in a moment tears gushed through my fingers, and fell upon the chair, and there stole into my boyish heart a realization of the fact that the great change had taken place. Christ had entered and I was a new creature. I had been born again. There was no excitement, no unusual feeling, but I knew that something had happened, and that ever after all life would be different. That was January 28th, 1906, when I was 16 years of age, and it has lasted to this day. Yes, and it is going to last, praise God, throughout the countless ages of eternity.”

Your conversion may not look exactly like Oswald’s, but there must be a change of direction: from sin and death to holiness and life, through the power and mercy of Jesus. Oswald was no longer under the control of our enemy the devil, but instead he was under the loving and powerful control of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit. Who owns you? Who leads you and where is he taking you? Please don’t assume that Jesus is your Lord if you have not asked Him to forgive you, change you and deliver from the power of darkness.

Oswald J. Smith went on to live for a further 80 years. He became a brilliant pastor, hymn writer and author and he sent out hundreds of missionaries. His wonderful, Christian life, which is continuing into eternity, began with one faithful step of faith, as he responded to Christ’s call. Have you taken that step and if you have, are you praying for those who have not. Is your church teaching that we need more than a good attitude, we need to recognize that we need our Savior to set us free from the power of sin. As new people in Christ, we should expect to make a radical difference, being the “body” of Christ reaching out to bring hope, truth and healing to a generation who are not reading the latest sermon in their local newspaper. We must heed the message and share the truth that “..unless you turn from your sins and become as little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Jesus’ words in Matthew 18:3)

+ I have quoted from “The One Year Christian History-A daily glimpse into God’s powerful work”. This is written by E. Michael and Sharon Rusten and it is published by Tyndale. It is excellent. Do not read it instead of daily Bible reading, but if you have time add this to your daily prayer and Bible reading . It will  encourage you as you see how others  have put Jesus first.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

Conversion: a Brand New Life in Jesus

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Yesterday I taught the Bible to teenagers at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ club at my daughter, Alice’s, middle school. I wanted them to understand the differences between a child of God and a child of the devil. I drew two columns on the white board, one for each type of child. There is a tendency in this culture to either over or under emphasize the devil. The children are usually shocked when I mention him and they are also offended by “hell” considering it to be a bad swear word rather than a real place where many are heading.

The kids wanted me to create a third column for those people who were not Christians but did not intentionally get involved with devil worship or witchcraft. I explained that I could not as the Bible clearly teaches that unless we are rescued out of the kingdom of darkness by Jesus ( Colossians 1:13 ) we are under the power of the evil one and are children of the devil.

I taught from 1 John 3:7-10: “Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love his brother does not belong to God.”

This passage does not say that by behaving well we can earn our way into the family of God. Instead it explains that when we become part of God’s family, Jesus enters us and because we are now led by the Holy Spirit, we are changed and we cannot keep sinning routinely (although we will still make mistakes).

How do we become part of God’s family? The teenagers who prepared their testimonies believed that baptism was the clear proof that someone had become a child of God. The Bible explains that baptism is symbolic of a believer passing from death to new life and this is a powerful image. The reality is that some people get baptized and then settle down to a life of sin with the smug assumption that they have done what it takes to go to heaven one day. A baptism must be accompanied by a dramatic spiritual new birth, if it is to be more than a historic ritual. John 1 explains that ..”to all who believed Him and accepted Him, he gave the right to become children of God.” They are reborn-not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan but a birth that comes from God.” God re- creates us when we respond to Him, believing and receiving Him, accepting Him as Lord of our new life and repenting of the messy lives we used to live.

Once we are under the leadership of Christ, rather than (wittingly or unwittingly) under the devil’s authority, we will change, so long as we really are living under the authority of Christ with His Spirit.1 John 2:3 says that ..”we can be sure that we know Him if we obey His commandments.” If we refuse to obey Jesus we are not His children. Jesus commands us to love one another in a Christ like way. 1 John 4:17 challenges us to copy Jesus. He showed us real love by giving up His life for us. Similarly, “..we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” This is made even more challenging by the following verse: “Dear children let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

We are taught to be like Jesus: “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” If we are Christians we will obey Him and resemble Him, otherwise we are not His children. I John makes this very clear. A very important part of being a Christian is loving God and loving other Christians. Elsewhere we are also told to love our enemies: we are commanded to love everyone, but if Christians fail to love those who are members of the body of Christ, how can we effectively help people who are not part of the Christian family? We know that walking as Jesus did involved meeting all sorts of people, to heal them, to cast out demons, to teach them the truth and to invite them into a relationship with Him. Without Christ’s love we will fail to reach out to those who so desperately need His love.

If we are God’s children are we letting Him lead us, are we obedient, do we give up our lives to help others, are we asking Jesus to fill us with His Holy Spirit? Thankfully Jesus will forgive us and re-instate us as he did with Peter. We are told in 1 John that we will not continue to live a life of sin once we have been dramatically re-created as Christians, as Jesus is in charge of us. I John 1:8-10 encourages us that when we confess our sins Jesus will forgive us and purify us. Sin should be the exception rather than the routine. Let’s make sure that we are truly living as children of God: forgiven, transformed and radiating the love of Jesus in action. We can be full of good intentions but thankfully Jesus did not just profess His love for us but He demonstrated it on the cross. Let’s follow his lead and show others that we are truly God’s children expressing His love, extending His hand of mercy. If you are not yet a child of God, ask Him to rescue you from the kingdom of darkness and receive Him so that He will live in you, dramatically changing your life.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

A Child of God, or a Child of the Devil?

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Martyn and I have done business presentations, putting in a lot of effort but receiving little response to our marketing services. We have dressed the part, prepared a first class presentation and provided food, and the audience has left smiling but unmoved and disinclined to buy. Conversely, a couple of weeks ago I walked three miles across the mountain separating us from our church and was certainly not dressed for business. I asked a couple if they would give me a ride home after the service. I did not really know them but was aware that they lived relatively near me and, as the weather was getting hotter, I did not want to return the way that I had come. Surprisingly, the couple had already determined to find either Martyn or me to discuss the possibility of us designing a web site for the wife’s business. It seemed that God had put us together and our prayer for business was being answered. God had shown up and was at least offering us the possibility to earn money.

At the National Outreach Convention, the lighting was stunning and the presentation was excellent. It was more impressive than our class act, presenting web design etc, but similar. There was interest and smiling faces, but from my perspective there was little connection between us: the audience and God. Sadly this is true of many Christian events. The focus can be on suggesting techniques to grow bigger churches, to attract people and to help leaders become terrific professional Christians. But God is bigger than techniques and we know that we can follow a prescribed formula and the result may not be relevant in the big scheme of things(from God’s perspective). I wanted to stop the steady progression of meetings and announce on some super loud microphone that everyone must drop to their knees and pray. This sounds like a Muslim call to prayer, but I think that it would have been a great re-focus. We would have been told to rely on Jesus, rather than talk about Him: to seek His actual presence.

On Friday, the final evening of the convention, the speaker, Francis Chan, stumbled onto the platform in tears, as he was impacted by the worship. Reaching for his handkerchief, he stammered humbly that he had never broken down in this way just before speaking. He confessed that recently he had experienced a level of pride seeing himself featured in Outreach magazine. Isn’t repentance and humility what we all need when we are in any way involved with talking about Jesus? We are weak vessels and we must transparently reveal Christ rather than displaying our own abilities. Our thoughts, words and efforts should not be wasted on declaring our own achievements. Christ through His word can make a much greater life changing impression than we can.

Francis Chan reminded us that without God’s power; strategies and ideas about church growth are meaningless. He compared tasteless salt with salt which is salty and wondered why our churches focused on the people who were like the flavorless type. They never changed and their only role was to add to the numbers, so that pastors could feel smug about the size of their churches. Chan showed us a plate of good salt and then he covered this with the useless type. I felt as though the “salt of the earth” described in Matthew 5:13 was being suffocated. Isn’t that what happens when churches pander to those who have no faith? In a futile attempt to entertain those who are not prepared to give up everything to follow Christ, they are in danger of discouraging believers, by teaching them all inoffensive half truths.

Francis Chan reminded us that the Christian faith is not one of compromise but a way of life that will result in our taking up our own crosses, following Jesus out of deep love for our Savior, despite the difficulties and the persecution. Chan taught Scripture as is. He did not cut and paste and he did not sew neatly cut pieces of Biblical patchwork together, avoiding context and raw truth. Many pastors avoid Biblical reality as it might drive away the half hearted. In contrast, the powerful message grabbed us and ushered in the presence of Jesus who was ready to change hearts and increase commitment. Hundreds of church leaders received prayer or prayed quietly on their own. I hope that they will return to their churches throughout the US and follow Jesus’ lead, teaching the whole truth because nothing else will do. Compromised truth will continue to result in heaps of tasteless ‘salt’ that might look like Christians but who “will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.” (Matthew 5:13)

Instead, let’s embrace the whole word of God, reading and teaching it as it has been written. It challenges people to become the “salt of the earth”. Let’s impact the world with God’s truth and trust that as people hear the challenging message, they too will become ‘salty’ and effective witnesses, pointing to our radical yet all loving and powerful, King Jesus.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

Francis Chan proclaims truth at the National Outreach Convention

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As a Christian I am concerned about the exclusion of Christianity in public schools. Like technology, if kids are not familiar with the Bible, they are likely to avoid it. If school shuns Christianity, where they spend most of their time, inevitably many will not consider picking up a Bible and reading it. If students are taught evolution as fact rather than as a theory, it is confusing to read the first few chapters of the Bible where it is taught that God created the world. Unless parents and churches teach the Biblical world view conscientiously school kids will assume that science contradicts faith.

I am not expecting public schools to exclusively teach a Biblical world view. However, the avoidance of any mention of God will have more serious consequences than failing to teach appropriate technology. The latter will cause us to potentially lag behind international competitors. Avoiding Jesus is resulting in many being ignorant of the meaning of life. We have been created by an all powerful, loving God, for a significant purpose. We are not a higher form of animal with instincts that need to be satisfied. We are made in God’s image to live godly lives responsibly reaching out in love to help others and to serve God. Sex education at school may suggest that satisfying our instincts is fine with appropriate protection. Christians need to teach a different message.

I appreciate that it is unlikely that schools will reintroduce the Bible and return to a pre-1960′s educational mind set. However, in my opinion good education should involve kids investigating different perspectives and opinions. Evolution should be taught as one approach and creation as another. In the same way that a biology teacher teaches evolutionary theory, it would be great if a Bible teacher could present the Christian world view. No one should be forced to believe, but good education requires an understanding of different perspectives. George Washington’s speeches should be read and discussed and his Christian perspective should not be eradicated by text book writers. Even if Christianity is not promoted, the kids should at least be encouraged to respect it and to understand how faith shaped American values and the constitution. Parents need to tell their kids about how Christians shaped this nation.

My husband could have made sure that all of our children were technically proficient making up for the inconsistent approach to technology at school. He chose not to push them to learn as they were already busy with homework and activities. It is easy to avoid making our children learn useful skills when they show little interest and start complaining. This is a greater problem when our children are not interested in finding out about Jesus. It is easier to leave them to sleep on Sunday mornings rather than take them to church against their will. Helping children to complete homework is bad enough but we may feel that encouraging them to read the Bible is yet one more battle. However if schools are no longer teaching about Jesus it is essential that we persevere.

I believe that despite our kids’ attitudes we must teach them about Jesus from the Bible and take them to church or to a meeting where they will learn from the Bible. My family is aware that many kids are not familiar with the Bible or church. Consequently we have been providing opportunities for our son James to ask his friends to come to our home to eat, play sports, “hang out” and to read the Bible. He invites lots of friends on Facebook and those who are interested come along. There is no pressure. They can walk from school in less than ten minutes. Most of the 8-12 kids who come have no church background but they are in a safe, comfortable place to ask questions. This has also boosted James’ faith. If it was not for him noone would come, and as a junior at high school he is learning the joy and the challenge of following Jesus. He is realizing that following is an active response and he is moving beyond just sitting and listening.

Jesus, in John 7:37 “cried in a loud voice, ‘if any man is thirsty, let him come to me and drink!’ ” We know that a drink is more vital than anything else. Are we receiving what we need from Jesus? Are we offering Him to others knowing that without Him they are spiritually thirsty and in great need? Encouraging kids to discover Jesus is not adding an extra burden to pressurized lives. We need to demonstrate that Jesus deals with our worries, refreshes us and loves us. He is not an extra activity but He is what life is all about and he offers life to the full. Kids are not hearing this at school, so we need to make sure that they are being offered the drink that Jesus offers. They may refuse to receive it now, but we can pray and we can offer opportunities for kids to find out more about Jesus.

As Christian women we can make a difference. If you are not yet a Christian Jesus will satisfy your thirst. Keep finding out about Him.

www.WomenRespond.com

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

Biblical illiteracy

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In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13) there are many seedlings that do not reach maturity. They are more disappointing to the gardener than the small dry grapefruit because the seedlings never bore any fruit and the seeds that were taken by the birds were non starters. Fruit is not only delicious but it also has the capacity for more of the same plant to grow. The original seed, if it grows effectively, can produce multiple seed producing fruits and the result is wonderful.

In Matthew 13:23, Jesus explains that “the seed that fell on good soil represent those who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” This is God’s will, and surely the goal of the church, that those who hear the good news about Jesus will understand the truth, and mature and multiply in the sense that they will help others to become productive children of God.

A Christian is not the smug, pew filler that I used to be. I was smug because I thought that I had done what was necessary by being in church, but I was no more than a seed on a hard piece of English stone floor, waiting to grow. There was so little truth to listen to and I did not understand that I needed to respond. Thankfully, Jesus put me in the equivalent of fertile soil when I went to college and arrived in a good church. The Bible was taught faithfully and as I listened I started to grow.

It seems that the hearer needs to be alert and listening and the message needs to be clear and true. It is so easy for all of us to be selective in our hearing. My children are adept at ignoring instructions to help but quick to hear any mention of food! The seeds that successfully reached maturity are like people who understand that without Jesus they are hopelessly lost. They hear and apply every one of His words to ensure that they grow up as God’s children rather than as a stunted, self absorbed seedling that shrivels up when in difficulty. The seed that becomes productive is like a true follower of Jesus who is not seeking his own comfort and pleasure but instead, like Jesus gives up his life. In John 12:24 Jesus says,”Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.”

Many people want to have the reassurance of being connected to Jesus. They marvel that He rose from the dead and they believe that He has the power to successfully rescue us from the curse of death. They are right to trust Jesus but many are tempted to avoid the self sacrifice that we are called to. Unless we die to ourselves we remain a single seed, but God’s vision is for us to produce much grain. It is only when we focus on loving Jesus and others instead of ourselves that we truly start to do what pleases God. My other blog posts about the seeds discuss the reasons that they fail to reach maturity (and fulfillment). They are stunted because they are like people who are focused on themselves, put off by persecution, money and other worries.

Instead we should be focused on pleasing God. He can be trusted with our lives and He can handle our troubles. There is no time to focus on these personal distractions as Christians must join Jesus in far more important work than feeling sorry for ourselves. He wants us to join with others to reach out to “the lost”, to those who do not yet know how much He loves them. First we need to give up our lives to follow Him: “If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life you will lose it but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” When we give up trying to control things and trust God we are re-born as a new creation, a child of God with Jesus leading us. No wonder that we can now be productive, and bold, as Jesus is the one who through us can bring about a fantastic ‘harvest’. If we labor alone we will remain a single seed but when we die to our own ambitions we will belong to Christ and we will be producing much “grain”.

I was like a seed sitting immobile on hard stone. I was preoccupied with myself and I prioritized my pleasure and my success above spending time with God or helping others. Once I was placed in a church where I was taught the truth about Jesus, I started to change and by the time I was in my second year at college I was becoming more excited about helping others and teaching the Bible than pursuing my personal dreams. Now my desire was to please Jesus and this gave me fulfillment. I wanted others to grow into a relationship with Christ and I was eager to share the great news that God himself came to earth to die for you and me that we could be set free from the power of sin and death. I continue to share this message of great joy and I hope that others will become like seeds that are productive, bearing fruit and living abundant lives.

Christian women respond: Persevere and become spiritually mature. God’s harvest is beautiful and impacts the world.

www.WomenRespond.com

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

The Harvest

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In contrast, our local high school offers many opportunities for the kids to celebrate their school and their fellow students. It was only this year that I became aware of the meaning of homecoming in the high school context. A good friend of ours who is a senior was in the homecoming “court” and he asked our son, James, to ask us if we would watch the parade and the football game as he would be making an appearance at both. Typically, James said that we would not be interested, but his friend persisted and spoke to me. It was a real honor to be invited by a teenager to go to something that was important to him, and this invitation provided me with a reason to finally discover what homecoming is.

Martyn and I stood on the corner straining to see the car that Patrick was traveling in.

Homecoming 2008 Prince Patrick

As we waited we watched the band and the high school dance team showing off the skills that had been their focus since entering high school. It was bright and bold and uplifting, as were the floats that were all representations of Alice in Wonderland. I used to teach kindergarten in England and an effective way of keeping four and five your olds creatively busy was to give them tissue paper and glue and the scrunched up colors were an easy way to fill a shape to make a valentine’s card or another small project.

I could not believe that high school kids had the stamina to cover huge areas with little pieces of scrunched up tissue: Alice, a rabbit and playing cards were modestly large but the rest of the float was vast. The kids involved with each project walked behind the float and there were not many of them. Each float was judged and the winner was announced at the homecoming football game that evening. I feel sure that I would have suggested paint as a faster option. School spirit is obviously a strong enough force to get kids working hard for many hours to create something that was attractive but only of temporary value. I wonder what has happened to those floats four days after the parade?

Poway High Homecoming 2008 float

In one respect I admire the enthusiasm, the energy and all the smiling faces. In the England where I grew up, I can’t imagine the same effort or enthusiasm. This simply was not the type of thing that we would do at school. Pranks and dry humor were more likely to motivate us. I am pleased to live in a less cynical time and place yet I wish that there was equal “spirit” in the churches as there is in the homecoming parade or at the homecoming football game. I have visited many churches and real enthusiasm and joy is not generally bubbling over as you enter the church service. It is sad that high school kids can get so excited about a school event, but in many cases avoid church or become disconnected when they go to church. The homecoming kings and queens, the school football heroes and the brightly colored float cannot present as much “spirit” as that which is offered by Jesus.

Those who commit their lives to Jesus are promised the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not a weird, ghost but rather he is God himself who lives with us in a spiritual, invisible form. In John 14:23 Jesus says, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep my Word; and My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make Our home with Him. The “we” and “Our” refers to the Trinity, the triune God: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus told his disciples that they would be better off with the Holy Spirit than actually spending time with Jesus, for the Holy Spirit would be in them rather than just with them. They would only receive the Holy Spirit once Jesus returned to Heaven. Jesus tells them that the Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of Truth” and the “Helper” who will be with his followers forever. Jesus also says that the Holy Spirit will also “teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” All of these quotes are from John chapter 14. They are huge reminders to us that Jesus can continue to live in us today, pointing us towards God and helping us understand his Word, the truth. He will only be active in us if we are prepared to yield to Him, to love and obey Him. The Holy Spirit is much more dynamic than school spirit so let’s ask him to turn us around, wake us up and fill us. He will enable us to love our neighbors and to get our priorities right.

Very soon after Jesus returned to Heaven after his triumphant resurrection; the Holy Spirit came and transformed His followers. Dramatically they were filled with the Holy Spirit and they preached with authority, healed the sick and risked death as they urgently told people about the truth and hope offered by Jesus. He also offers us His presence, His truth, His help, His power and His love. Many teenagers seem to have other interests to pursue which contribute to school “spirit”. The homecoming parade would have been nothing if it wasn’t for the band, the dancers and the multiple pieces of colored tissue. Of course much of what we do is fun and is worthwhile, but none of this school spirit or anything else that preoccupies us: our kids, job, house etc can match the eternal love and transformation that Jesus offers. The Holy Spirit brings eternal joy and life that is of real purpose and value. Let’s look beyond the obvious and seek the one who has so much more to offer us; leaving our sin, our egos and our pride behind so that we can worship him with our lives. The church should reflect this devotion and enthusiasm. Let’s ask Jesus to make His home with us, indwelling our beings. As He makes changes in our lives and answers our prayers, let’s tell everyone, with more enthusiasm than the kids who cheer on their homecoming “royalty”, that Jesus is the king of kings.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

Homecoming

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Event invitation

Mike Salazar, the church’s youth pastor, spoke on 1 Samuel 3: 1-11: Young Samuel was living with Eli the priest in the “house of the Lord” in Shiloh. Samuel was lying down at night and God spoke audibly to him, calling his name. It is understandable that the boy assumed that Eli was calling him, rather than God. It was only after the third time of being called that Eli concluded that it was God who was calling Samuel and he advised Samuel to respond to God by answering, “Speak Lord for your servant is listening.”

Last night Mark challenged the kids to respond to God’s call. If they were not yet followers of Jesus he suggested that they should respond in repentance and faith. If they already believed, he encouraged them to surrender their lives to Him as Lord (rather than seeing him as some distant, rather irrelevant figure). Mark challenged those who were already committed to Jesus to be missionaries in their schools.

Many kids responded and I trust that this will push them to become wholehearted in their response and in their attitude to those around them, that they should truly offer love and speak truth to their friends at school.

The challenge also applies to the rest of us. How do we respond to the living God? Are we prepared to read the Word of God, the Bible, and really listen to Him and change? We may not hear him audibly but the Bible is Jesus’s voice and we are wise when we apply this to our lives. In the book of James chapter 1 verses 22-25, we are told: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it- he will be blessed in what he does.”

Young Samuel was being called by God to tell Eli a tough message. God had warned Eli that he needed to restrain his sons who were officially priests but were acting in a contemptible manner. Eli had ignored God in this respect and now God, through Samuel, was pronouncing the dire consequences of failing to respond to God’s warning (1 Samuel 1: 11-18). God is powerful, loving and merciful but also just. We need to pay attention to Him and respond humbly and obediently, believing that He will bless us if we listen to His voice and take necessary action.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

A call to commit

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See you at the pole artwork

Kids get up early to stand round their school’s flag pole to pray for their school and their nation. This is a good start, but it should be seen as the faithful launch of an endeavor to continue to pray and to continue to reach out to their fellow students throughout the year.

I was at a recent meeting in San Diego for leaders concerned about the youth of our city. Here in San Diego the sun shines constantly and beaches are nearby. Sports or band or homework or family demand much attention and we should not be surprised that most teenagers no longer attend a place of worship. The sad consequence is that these passtimes have replaced Jesus. They are all enveloping and the expectation is that kids either pursue excellence for hours each day or they almost drop out. It’s all or nothing…The same is true for many of their parents. Most jobs demand long hours and offer little paid leave. The impression must be given that the job is the number one priority and vacations must be kept short. Alternatively, and increasingly common is the tough reality that many adults have few work options and struggle with unemployment.

It seems that most people are either too busy or too depressed to walk confidently into their schools or work places to talk about Jesus, to reach out to the lost with Christ’s compassion. It is hard to think of the busy successful ones as lost, but from Jesus’ perspective they are just as lost as those dependent on drugs or alcohol, if they have no relationship with him. In Luke 19:10 we are reminded that “the Son of Man (Jesus) has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” That was his purpose in coming to Earth.

In Luke chapter 19 Jesus seeks Zacchaeus, a greedy tax collector, notorious for cheating people. Jesus wants to spend the day with this man who is rich and selfish, a man who in Jesus’ eyes is definitely lost. Jesus does not just want to hover in churches or even round flag poles with the favored few, the holy huddle. He wants to reach those who have no concept of religion. Jesus does not wait for Zacchaeus to step into a temple or church; he invites himself to the tax collector’s house and Zacchaeus’s life is transformed: from profiteer to generous benefactor in a single day. He gives away half of his wealth to the poor and he repays those he cheated four times what he took! Jesus concluded that “salvation has come to this house today..” Jesus went after this guy and apparently prompted him to change totally. Zacchaeus’s actions show a repentant heart expressing Jesus’ love.

If you have not experienced the love of Jesus, call out to him and read his words in the New Testament. He loves you and he will change you, if like Zacchaeus you are willing to repent. Perhaps you are already aware of Jesus. Have you allowed him to change you, has he empowered you with his love and his Spirit so that you can’t help but reach out to the lost at school or at work? Let’s move beyond “see you at the pole” and respond like Jesus. Salvation is far more important than being politically correct or being successful: it is about whether or not we and our friends spend an eternity with Jesus. It is about radically changed lives in the present as well as in the future. It is about letting Jesus work in and through us to change the world.

This is a post from: WomenRespond.com

See you at the pole

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