Encouraging, Empowering & Equipping Ordinary Christians To Live Powerful Missional Lives!
Are you focused when it comes to missional living or are you all over the place and not really sure what it is you should concentrate on? This is short video I am going to share with you that we need to get back to the heart of what missional living is all about and what you need to stay focused and prepare to live that powerful missional life anytime, anywhere and with anybody.
Listen to what it was that caught the attention of the Apostle Paul and others around the known world at that time that caused him to thank God for them every time he thought of them. These two things were the characteristics that built a powerful missional living reputation for that church.
Do you have those characteristics? Watch and find out.
Here's one idea how you can quickly and easily shine the Light of Christ in your part of this dark world during Thanksgiving.
Powerful and effective Missional Living requires the wisdom! Where does that wisdom come from? Watch this short video and encouraged to be wise in sharing Jesus with others, making reproducing disciples makers and on shining the Light of Christ brightly in your part of this dark world!
In this video I am going to share with you 5 Biblical Principles for living a missional life found from Jesus' Sermon On The Mount.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV)
#1: ALL CHRISTIANS HAVE THE LIGHT - NOT JUST SOME!
"You are the light ..."
Having the Light of Christ isn't for just a few special people. Every single person who has given their life over to Christ by faith has the light!
#2: CHRISTIANS ARE TO SHINE THE LIGHT IN THE WORLD - NOT CHURCH BUILDINGS!
"You are the light of the world ..."
To much of what we do to shine the Light of Christ happens in building tucked away from the real world. The people who need to see the Light of Christ are not coming into our church buildings. Christ told us to go shine His light in the world.
#3: CHRISTIANS ARE TO DISPLAY THE LIGHT - NOT HIDE IT!
"A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house."
We are not to hide the light away so nobody knows that you follow Christ. Instead, we are to shine His light in a way that lots of people can see it and benefit from it.
#4: GOOD DEEDS IS THE ILLUMINATION OF THE LIGHT - NOT JUST WORDS!
"let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds"
Doing good deeds or loving actions is a way to illuminate people's lives so they can see Christ and God's love.
#5: THE GOAL IS TO GLORIFY GOD - NOT OUSELVES!
"glorify your Father in heaven"
The goal of shining the Light of Christ is for people to glorify God the Father. It should never be our aim to get the glory for ourselves. The glory always belongs to God and God alone!
Jesus said that the world would know that we are His disciples by our love for one another and the Apostle Paul said that love in kind, so one of the ways the world will know about Jesus is through our kindness. Watch this video to learn more and then take some time to evaluate your own missional living to see if kindness is part of it.
Jesus told His disciples that the world would know that they are His disciples by their love for others. Love for others is the proof of a sincere relationship with Christ. Love is the Light of Christ that shines from us to others who still need to know Christ.
The Apostle Paul in I Corn. 13 says that "Love is patient" - therefore I like to say that "Missional Living is Patient". Watch this video and then evaluate yourself and ask how loving or patient are you with those who still need to know Christ.
Jesus told us what the proof of truly being His disciples, which is to be on mission.
"By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:35
Watch this video and then ask yourself: "Do I live the kind of missional life that proves I am a true Follower of Christ?"
One of the most effective tools for living a powerful missional life is the ability to sincerely love those who don't know Christ. Listen to what Jesus says in John 13:35
But what does love look like when it comes to missional living? It's a nice thought but how do you put it into practice? Let's take a look at 1 Cor. 13:4-8 and see how the Bible describes love and through it we will get a better idea of how we are to love those who don't know Christ yet!
How patient are you with people? Are you willing to allow time for the Holy Spirit to work in their life? Or are you pushy and demand people to respond quickly and immediately! When it comes to missional living we need to remember that we are working on God's time table and not our own.
Kindness is a virtue that is an absolute essential when it comes to share Christ with people. Being helpful and meeting peoples needs people know you are not just all talk. Dale Carnegie has been quoted saying, "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." When it comes to missional living that is so very true!
Missional Living is never about what you can get from others but what you can give to them. When you are envious of people (their lifestyle, possessions etc..) it's nearly impossible to sincerely share Christ and His love for them. Why? Because your eye is on what someone has and not on whom (Christ) you can share with them.
Missional Living is never about bragging yourself or making yourself look good! Mission Living is bragging on Christ and making him look desirous.
Missional Living is be willing to go to the homeless, the helpless, the beaten down and the forgotten. People filled with pride have no room in their heart to associate with the outcasts of this world. By the way those were the ones Jesus specifically targeted to go and share the Gospel to first.
Missional Living is sincerely being nice to those of the world. There are to many people in the name of "sharing the Gospel" sound more rude and hateful. How is possible to sincerely share God's Good News and do it rudely? You can't!
Missional Living is not about "YOU" but about "OTHERS".
Missional Living can take the insults, the slandering, and the abuse and still feel love and compassion even for those who are hurting them.
Missional Living doesn't keep any records of wrongs done to them. There will be times when someone will hurt you over and over again but its you unconditional love for them that God uses to soften their hearts and come to faith in Christ.
Missional Living abhors when evil men and activities advance.
Missional Living is all about sharing the Truth. The truth of Christ which can set people free!
Missional Living is about helping and protecting people and their reputations and not about harming them.
Missional Living is about trusting God to do His work as we are being faithful to our job of sharing the Gospel and making disciples.
Missional Living always believes that at some point individuals that we are praying for and sharing with will come to faith in Christ.
Missional Living never quits - never gives up - never stops. It's always advancing!
Missional Living is about sharing with the people of this world how they can "WIN" IN CHRIST!
How do you keep going in missional living when things get discouraging and difficult? That is the question we are going to look at in todays Missional Living Devotional.
Missional Living is all about relationships! It is impossible to live a powerful missional life without having developed strong relationships with those people you are trying to reach for Christ. That doesn't mean you have to develop a relationship with a person before you share Christ with them. That is a popular belief but it is not one that held up by scripture. There are examples after examples where people share the Gospel with people on their very first encounter with them. So, please understand me YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE RELATIONSHIP WITH A PERSON BEFORE YOU SHARE JESUS! But with that said I do believe that the development of strong and healthy relationships that are Godly becomes the proof to many that the message of the cross is real and authentic. It can become the bridge that helps people who've heard the message you already brought them believe and receive. Take a few moments and listen to this video to learn 6 principles for developing those relationship you've begun on the mission field.
Joining God in His activity is never an easy proposition especially when you first start out joining Him on His mission. Why?
It's one thing to sit around and talk about joining Christ on His mission and how important it is but quite a different thing to actually get up and do it!
Hudson Taylor the great English missionary to China was thought by many of his friends to be a bit odd because he was willing to give up all the comforts of England and go to that foreign and less modern place of known as China. What was the difference between Hudson Taylor and His friends? COURAGE! Hudson Taylor was able to muster up the courage necessary to go shine the Light of Christ in China while the others were to afraid!
But what is courage and where does it come from? If we can answer these two important question maybe we too, like Hudson Taylor, will be able to more effectively join Christ on His mission and go where He would send us! Maybe, we too will be able to shine the Light for those who are still lost in spiritual darkness and lead them back home to God.
Let me quickly answer that first question and get it out of the way. What is courage?
"Courage is the ability to do something even though it frightens you; it is strength in the face of pain or grief. Some might say that a courageous person is brave and bold; strong and tenacious; or tough and valiant. Courage is the ability to go out and do something when everything inside of you is screaming to not go."
Courage is one of those virtues that everyone admires and wishes to have but few actually exhibit it. Many feel that courage can only be found in just a few people and that most people will never attain it.
However, courage is a necessary ingredient for a powerful missional life. Just to be able to say, like the Prophet Isaiah,
Requires courage. But where does that kind of courage come from? How can ordinary christians develop that mental state that will allow them to abandon all to join Christ in His work? The answer is simple!
In this post we are going to look at 3 Specific Promises that God gave to Joshua when He commissioned him to be part of God's mission. Joshua's calling is found in Joshua 1:1-9. Three times in those 9 verses God instructs Joshua to have courage. 3 TIMES! Why? Because God knew that the commissioning of Joshua was going to cause Joshua tremendous stress and anxiety and so God was reassuring him that he could have courage to do what he was being called to do.
These same 3 promises are for all of Christ's Followers and when fully accept will give you the courage to join Christ also on His mission. Let's take a look at Joshua 1:1-9 to learn of these 3 Promises.
"Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory." (v. 3,4)
This promise to Joshua was based on a previous promise that God had made to Abraham and again to his son Isaac and again to Jacob. God had promised that Abraham and his family line would inherit that land as God's gift to them.
Notice that the verses say that it "shall" be your territory but it doesn't say, "it might be your territory" or "it's possible for it to be your territory". No. God said that the promise land WOULD BE THEIR TERRITORY and that Joshua would bring them into it to possess it.
IT WAS A PROMISE OF SUCCESS!
In Matthew 24:14 Jesus make not only a prediction but also another promise of success that's important to all of us who are joining Christ on His mission. He says,
"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." (NIV)
What's the promise in this verse? That the gospel of the kingdom of God "WILL" be preached to the whole world! Again, there's no if's, but's or maybe's! The Gospel of Jesus Christ will be preach to every tribe, nation, language and people group in the whole world. IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN!
So, when we join Christ in His mission of sharing the Gospel to people all around us we are guaranteed success! We cannot fail! Why? Because it's a promise of success. When you join Christ in making disciple of all nations you will succeed because Christ has already appointed it success.
Knowing you can't fail in joining Christ on His mission should bring you such confidence. Why wouldn't you join Him if you couldn't fail? Why wouldn't you have courage if your success was guaranteed?
"Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." (vs. 7,8)
This promise is stated over and over again throughout the Bible! The promise is simply this: Know God's Word, meditate on God's Word and OBEY God's Word you will be successful. It's really quite simple. Obedience to God and His word will bring the blessings of God into your life but failure to obey God and His word will bring about His disfavor.
Why is this true? Because God is the creator of all things and as such He knows how it is suppose to operate. When we operate our life according to the way it was designed we experience the blessings of a well operated life but if we chose not to live life according to the way God has designed it our life will break down and fall apart. IT'S JUST THAT SIMPLE.
It's like a car. You can chose to run your car and never get an oil change as it is recommended to get every 3,000 miles. And you can actually run that car for many miles that way. But eventually there comes a time will the oil breaks down and your car engine locks up and won't run anymore. The car will actually break down many miles earlier than it would have if you had just gotten the recommended oil change. Our life is the same way. We can live life contrary to God's owner manual, the Bible, for a while. But eventually your life breaks down and will die much earlier than it would have if you had lived according to God's word.
If you're joining Christ on His mission and living life according to the Word of God you are promised success in your missional endeavors! Look at the end of verse 7, "...that you may have prosper wherever you go."
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." (v. 9)
Here God tells Joshua that there is absolutely no reason why he should be afraid and he has every reason to have courage because He (God) will be with him wherever he goes. He said the same thing in verse 5:
"No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you."
God's promise to Joshua was to never leave him or forsake him! Isn't that the most encouraging thing you could ever think of? If God's continuous presence doesn't give you courage I don't know what will!
Listen to what Jesus says at the end of when He is giving the Great Commission to go make disciples. He says,
"and low I am with you always even to the end of the age."
There's that same promise for us that was given to Joshua! Christ has promised to always be with us as we join Him on His mission of discipling the nations.
These 3 promise that will give you courage are given to those who are committed to joining Christ (God) on His mission. Begin to join God in shining the Light of Christ in your part of this dark world but do it without fear and filled with courage.
I'd love to hear your thoughts about this post. Leave a comment and share what's on your mind and let's see if we can get a good discussion going. Come back to read what others have to say and respond to their comments.
Also, please take a few moments and share this blog with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks I'd appreciate it.
To effectively live a powerful missional life Christians need to remember that those who are without Christ live in spiritual darkness. This video is intended to remind us that people are still lost in darkness and to help look at people with new eyes!
Do you want to be part of a powerful movement of God that allows the Light of Christ to shine brightly in this dark world? Then check out this video and learn about one thing that Jesus commanded His disciples to do that would create a powerful movement of God!
This story starts off after Jesus has been arrested, after he has been killed, after he has been resurrected but before He has ascended into Heaven. It is the story of how Jesus restored the Apostle Peter back to the ministry after he had failed Jesus at His crucifixion by denying Him three times. Peter is discouraged and beating himself up for his failure. In this post we are going to look at the 5 steps Jesus took to restore him, so he could become that powerful servant of God we all love and respect.
You will need to get your Bible out and read what it says to see how it applies to the points I am making. I pray that God will bless you as you read this and encourage you. Maybe you are one who who needs to be restored. Here's some good news for you! Jesus is ready, willing and able to restore you just like He did for Peter and countless others. So, read and be encouraged!
This story starts off with Peter telling some of other apostles that he was going to go back to fishing. This is important because Peter had left this profession to follow Christ just about 3 years earlier. For him to make this declaration "I'm going fishing" he was in essence saying, "I am going back to my old life before we met Christ."
That is the attitude of a backslidden Christian! They've given up on follow Christ and going back to live the way the used to live before knowing Christ. But also, in this story we see that Jesus has other plans. He doesn't allow Peter to just goes back to his old life but Jesus shows up to restore him to full service and commitment.
In verses 4-7 we see Jesus showing up on the shore where Peter and the others were fishing that night. He calls out to them and tells them to throw the net on the other side. When they did their nets were filled fish. This caused them to remember another time when Jesus said to do the same thing with the same kinds of results. And because of this they recognized that it was Jesus was on the shore.
Why did Jesus come to where Peter was at? Because Peter was floundering and felt unworthy to continue to be a servant of Christ. Jesus showed up to restore him and give him the confidence he need. NOTICE IT WAS JESUS WHO PURSUED PETER - NOT PETER PURSUING JESUS!
In verses 10-14, after Peter responding favorably with Jesus' pursuit we see Jesus inviting Peter and the others with him, to sit down and have a meal with him. How many times had Peter sat around the fire eating a meal with Jesus over the past three years? A ton for sure! Because of his failure he probably thought those opportunities would never happen again but now Jesus is inviting Peter to sit and eat with Him. How precious and encouraging that must have been for Peter.
I think one of the important things to realize in being restored to Christ is that Jesus isn't wanting to beat you up first! No, Jesus is wanting the wonderful relationship that had be originally established to be restored. Jesus wants to sit and eat a meal with us as much, if not more, than we do with him.
As they finish their meal together, in verses 15-17, we see Jesus ask Peter three times if he love him or not and each time Jesus follows Peter answer with a command to take care of His sheep. Jesus already knew Peter loved him. It wasn't for his benefit that Jesus asked that question but it was for Peter's benefit. Peter needed to be reminded of his love for the Lord and to be reassure that Christ still wanted him to be part of his band of apostles. The questions of love and the commands to take care of the sheep was Christ's powerful way of letting Peter know that his service and ministry was wanted and needed. The only requirement Jesus asked from Peter was for Peter's love and devotion.
In verses 18-19 Jesus shares with Peter what it will cost him for continuing to be a devoted follower of Christ. He lets him know that his commitment and service would lead him to his own death and a death by crucifixion.
Isn't interesting how open and clear Jesus is with his followers of what it means and cost to be his disciple. IT WILL COST YOU YOUR LIFE! Even though, out of fear, Peter denied Christ, Jesus was letting him know that there would be other times to come where Peter would need to gird up his fear and place his faith and trust in Him. Jesus was preparing Peter for what would evidentially come around again.
In verses 20-23 Peter begins to ask what would happen to a different disciple. Jesus' response is classic. "What's that to you?" In other words Jesus was telling Peter what happens to other disciples is none of His business. The only thing that should be important for Peter was to faithfully live out what God has determined to be his role.
To often, faithfully serving Christ, gets all muddled up because our focus is on other people and not on Christ and his will for our lives. We complain to God about this person having this blessing, or that person getting to serve Christ in that way. That kind of focus will never honor God. Instead, we should be saying to Christ as he reveals his mission for us to be these words,
"Yes Lord, yes to you will and to your way. Yes, Lord, yes I will trust you and obey. When your Spirit speaks to me, with my whole heart I'll agree. And my answer will be, 'yes Lord, yes."
When it comes to missional living there is one of the Biblical figure that pop up as a great example for how to do it is John the Baptist! Today, I want us to look at John the Baptist and how he went out to "Make the path straight for the coming of the Lord." What did he do? And how did he do it?
Take a few moments and watch this devotional, think about it and then share your thoughts as comments below.
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