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True crisis
We insist on panic in areas that don’t need it. Ebola in America, for instance. We have completely ignored the heavier issue of West Africa… but what is that to us? While we panic over a handful possibly contracting the virus, we continue to ignore larger issues. ISIS is still tearing through Syria and Iraq and is bent on destruction.…
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Why pay attention to ISIS and the Middle East?
Sometimes we can reason out the current Middle East situation with logic that says, “Let’s back away from the region and let them work it out… or battle it out.” What would be wrong with that? First of all, it’s incredibly difficult to say WHAT to do… but to do nothing has some scary consequences. It is not realizing the…
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It’s hard to kill a dead man
I’ve met several missionaries who are part of the “Live Dead” teams being raised up to go into the hardest places of the world. They have been to my church. I’ve sat with them at lunch. They are incredibly determined people. Meeting one in context is somehow a very different story. Sitting in another country, listening to them almost casually…
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The deck is stacked
Last night in our prayer group we were catching up on the past two weeks. As I talked about what God was speaking to me concerning Ethiopia, I was listening to what God was saying to people in our church while I was away. One phrase that stuck out as we talked was, “The deck is stacked.” Someone had heard…
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The season of opportunity
This is no longer a season of standing “at the threshold” of opportunity. We are no longer in a place of being “right at the door.” We are through the door. We are not at the opportunity. We are IN the opportunity. It is time to walk on and work hard. The power of the Spirit is abundantly present. 20 Now to him who is…
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Three Days to Ethiopia
In typical fashion, just before a trip it gets the busiest. This week leading up to the trip to Ethiopia has been insane. I wanted to take a moment to simply say again THANK YOU to all who gave so generously toward this trip to Ethiopia. It has been so amazing to see this all come together. Thank you for…
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Seven Days to Ethiopia
I am leaving for Ethiopia in a week. A prayer I’ve had for two years is coming to its next step in seven days. It’s only a next step. The two week trip will be a teaching assignment at Addis Bible College in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. But this is also a prayer trip. Two years ago it was the Spirit…
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How to get God “back in our schools”
It’s not like he ever left… but at any rate… We have a great relationship with our schools where our church is located. It started when we decided to bless instead of curse. When I first arrived at the church as pastor I went all around town and introduced myself. City hall, police department, fire department, schools, businesses… I just…
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Can we let up in prayer?
We have had some BIG things happen in prayer this year. As a church, we have prayed intensely for great needs. Missionary friends in extreme need. World situations. We cannot let up. Three requests guarding cancer, and one is personal. Would you intercede for my dad who is going through some tests? We would LOVE to hear that there is…
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Can we “break” prayer?
I am in and out of a book by James C. Wihoit called, Spiritual Formation as if the Church Mattered: Growing in Christ through Community. He gives some challenging thoughts on prayer that are good reminders for me. Prayer is an experiment in partnership with God. Prayer is such a powerful tool that I need to remember I can’t “break” it. Even…
Category: Prayer
