This past week, I had the unfortunate opportunity of being confronted by a judgmental Christian Brother at the Texas State Fair in Dallas.  It is quite saddening to know that outreach has produced such fruit.  Jesus has instructed us to “go and make disciples of all nations” with “Love and Forgiveness”.  Have we forgotten how Jesus ministered to “The Lost”?  Apparently, this individual looked at me and saw a long-haired, tanned skinned, goateed, flip-flop wearing “Sinner” without even engaging in conversation with me.  From his booth, he pointed right at me and called out that  “You need to change your ways and your life.”   Unbeknown to him, I am a Brother in Christ, a fellow evangelist, and a minister at The Lighthouses.  My spirit-man was crying, seeing how this individual pre-conceived others without knowing the person and where the person’s heart is placed.  My point is not to condemn this person for what he had said and done.  I have since forgiven him.  I just want us to be aware of how and what we do and say can be perceived as judgmental and Un-loving to others. We are to be multipliers, not dividers in Christ.

If you minister to someone, it is much better if you disciple the individual:

• Get to know him or her.
• Find out where they are in their “walk” in life.
• Give them encouragement and words of life.
• Meet them where they are at.  (Go into the “Dark” places and “Shine” your “Light”)
• You must go to them and not expect that they will always come to you.
• Love them and show them Forgiveness.

God will sometimes put those in your path and you must be prepared to minister.  You don’t have to “stage” or “pre-plan” an outreach event, it is simply not natural or godly appointed at that point.  Most times, it just falls before you.  Be ready and show them how God has changed you.  Let God speak through your words and actions.  Be blessed in your ministry.

Scriptures to read:

Luke 6:37-42
Galatians 5:14
John 8:7
John 3:17
Matthew 28:18-20

Originally written by JShannon:  Saturday, July 10,  2010

Peel away the world from yourself and what do you see? If see empty vessel, you must fill it with something! Why not something everlasting? Don’t decive yourself with things that lead to a bridge to nowhere! Be lead by your spirit to the one that gives life that has no end! Come to Jesus, who loves you! No matter what you have done to yourself and others. Realize that no one is perfect, but can be perfected in Christ. You can live freely with Him!

Originally written by JShannon:  Friday, January 8, 2010

Jesus outrightly pointed out that lying is from Satan – “The Father of Lies”. Lying is consistent with the his character. (John 8:44) So, why would you want to put yourself in a situation of conforming to the nature of Satan? He brings No Life… He kills, steals, and destroys…(John 10:10) This is not a “Good” attribute to have… Lying, even “White Lies”, can lead you down a slippery slope to falling away from God and into Satan’s snare.

Only Jesus can set you free, because he is the way, the truth, and the life. (John 14:6) The Truth sets us Free. (John 8:32) It is true freedom that only comes from Christ. He is our path to everlasting life and His nature is Good. So, let’s speak the truth and strengthen our relationship with the One who Loves us and sets us Free! (Ephesians 4:15)

So, you see there are no “grey areas.” You are either living a life of truth following Christ. (Psalm 86:11) Or, you are living a life of lies (sin) and heading for eternal destruction with Satan. The choice is yours… How will you live your life? Accept Him into your heart today and enjoy the Freedom Christ brings!

Originally written by JShannon:  Sunday, December 13, 2009

This Afternoon, I was reading a book by Patsy Cameneti.

This quote from her book stood out to me: “If we don’t occupy and put down roots, something else will!”

This spoke directly to my heart. Earlier this week I was reading a USA Today article about how people were filling their needs with false religions and other things. (Even Christians!) We need to have Christ occupy our lives and have his roots firmly planted within us. Or, something else will…

Then, there are people and places that are not the greatest places to be…that we, as followers of Christ, need to shine Our Light in these places… Otherwise, something else will…

It is sad that so many are deceived and left behind because the body of Christ is not taking “The Light” into these dark places… What are we afraid of?

Originally written by JShannon:  Sunday, December 13, 2009

“That is why he (Christ) is the one who mediates a New Covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised for them. For Christ died to set them (us) free from the penalty of the sin they committed under the First (Old) Covenant.” Hebrews 9:15 (NLT)

Under the Old Covenant there were lots of rules and regulations that could never be obtained or met by us. In this was a process of worship for the Old Covenant believers that meant multiple blood sacrifices to purify oneself from sin. This can prove deadly too. Just ask the High Priest of that time who had a good possibility of dying when going into the Most Holy Place to make the sacrifices.

It is because of the one and only (singular) sacrifice of Christ, that we have the freedoms we have. He broke our bondage to sin. He has given us a direct relationship with God. We are no longer to live in oppression of shame, guilt, or the belief that there is a litany of rules and regulations of the Old Covenant. Under the New Covenant, we have the law in our hearts and we have relationship with Him. We are called to Love and Love Others. We are to live in Joy! That is why I am glad that I am a New Covenant believer. You can be one too. Just open yourself up to him. You will gain a New Best Friend that will never forsake you or leave you. Thanks be to him!

“I will bring My people back to Me. I will not hold back My Love from them, for I am no longer angry at them.” Hosea 14:4 (NLV)

Originally written by JShannon:  Sunday, 01 March 2009

A couple of Friday mornings ago, during a Men’s Bible Study, I was given a word that I know will touch many hearts. Even though these times seem uncertain, we all should know that one thing is certain… God is an Awesome God!

In my reading, the following verse stood out to me:

“You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings.” Psalm 23:5 (NLT)

In Him, we have nothing to fear. We are His Anointed Ones! Even when our enemies or situations seem to be against us, He gives us Direction, Protection, Peace, and an Over Abundance of Blessings. Yes, we can “party” (feast) in the presence of our adversaries! God has provided a way!

Remember, if life is giving you “Lemons”, Seek HIM and Stand in His Protection, Peace, and Blessings to have an “Abundance of Lemonade”! All you need to do is Accept Him, Follow Him, and be Open to His Direction and His Blessings will be freely given unto you! Praise God!

Originally written by JShannon:  Tuesday, 10 February 2009

There is no such thing or expression as “I am just not gifted to Evangelize” or “I am not called into Evangelism”. In fact, in every Christian, the gift of Evangelism was placed into you by the death, resurrection, and teachings of Jesus Christ. As soon as you accept Christ into your life, God has “raised you up, to demonstrate His Power in you, and that His name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.” Romans 9:17 (NASB) You are also to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them…. teaching the to obey all the commandments.” Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT) It is a part of your faith walk and your relationship with Him. How can you “love your neighbor”, if you hold back the Freedom and Life-Giving Words of Salvation and ultimately their access to HIS Kingdom and HIS Promises? It really doesn’t matter what method you use… It doesn’t matter where you Evangelize. As long as you follow the 3 steps of Evangelism: 1) Plant The Seed; 2) Water the Field; 3) The Harvest.

Planting the Seed

It really doesn’t matter how you plant the seed, but what you use to plant the seed. One key element of planting the seed is to use Scriptures from the Bible. It can be a simple Proverb, Psalm, Promise of God, Life Saving messages from the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), or Personal Testimony. How you present it can be a wide variety of things… It can happen anywhere…. The Witness (presentation) is where the fun and creativity come in. It is also the most difficult part. A Witness could be done by a conversation, song, play, movie, handing out tracts\bibles, open air preaching, feeding the hungry, clothing those in need, and etc. Like I said, it can happen anywhere, on a street corner, at a festival, at work, during a coffee break, at lunch, in Church (YES, I said it… IN CHURCH), at the grocery store, and etc… (Practically ANYWHERE!) Yes, this step can be hard, since this is where you see whether the seed takes or the ground is too hard for the seed to be planted (Rejection). This is when the next step comes into play. Remember: There is nothing like the feeling of leading a person to Christ and seeing the Joy that Salvation brings to The Lost!

Water the Field

Sometimes those you are ministering to are not ready or either flat-out reject you or are just not ready to accept Christ at this time. Remember: Christ has given us “authority and power to proclaim” and is “always with us”. In order to have a good harvest, you have to water the field and sometimes this has to happen often. It is always a good to pray before, during, and after your encounter with “The Lost”. Pray for their hearts to be open, soft, and receptive to words you are going to share with them. (Let the Holy Spirit lead you and the person(s) that you are ministering to.) Always, return to the place that you ministered at, you will find out that with each repeat visit that there are more receptive ears and the ground is getting soft and ready for harvest. If possible give the person that you are ministering to your contact information (email) so that you can make contact and meet them at a later time and place. There is no limit on how long this step can last, it could be a few hours, days, weeks, months and even years…. Just like “Jesus Knocks” – Revelation 3:20 (NLT), “You Must Knock” – Matthew 7:7 (NLT). Don’t give up on them. Keep Watering the Field! Eventually after planting and watering, YOU WILL HAVE HARVEST! and will need to move to the next step…. Hallelujah!

The Harvest

This is every Evangelists’ Goal. We are always praying, seeking, and standing for a bountiful harvest. When a person is ready, they will practically “leap out” for it, there will be signs that the Holy Spirit will give you and at that point you will lead them into their new life with Christ. I will say that not every time, will you have harvest. If you don’t, you know that you still need to water the field more. When they are ready, you must lead the person(s) to accept Christ in their Hearts, to ask for Forgiveness and Turn-Away from their Sins, give them brief instructions about how to live their New Life in Christ, and help them find a Bible believing Church to be a part of.

CHRIST DIED for a REASON! He did it for us to have access to GOD, HIS KINGDOM, and HIS PROMISES! If we cannot sacrifice as little as telling someone about HIM by Evangelism… We are no better than the Pharisees and Scribes of his day! We are no better than those who persecuted HIM! We are no better than those who do not know HIM! It becomes more of a question of FAITH! Are Truly Ready to Serve HIM??? As Jesus Said, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT) So what are you waiting for? GO FORTH AND PREACH THE GOOD NEWS TO ALL THE WORLD!!!!!!!

Originally written by JShannon:  Tuesday, 03 February 2009

In this Season of Uncertainty, we must look to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Lately, it seems that we’ve been bombarded with the spirit of fear by our broadcast media and leaders. (Fear of our global economy… Fear over our job stability or loss… Fear of wars, all of the goings on of our world, and our leaders… )

We must remember that GOD IS IN CONTROL!

God reigns above the nations, sitting on his holy throne. Psalm 47:8 (NLT)

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. Psalm 46:1 (NLT)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

He DOES NOT want us to LIVE in the SPIRIT OF FEAR!

Jesus said, “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Matthew 6:25-34 (NLT)

I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4 (NLT)

The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? Psalm 27:1 (NASB)

Even when times our tough, He is ALWAYS there to PROVIDE. He is JEHOVAH JIREH!

And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 (NLT)

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 (NLT)

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)

The only way you can find comfort and joy during this time is to ACCEPT CHIRST and STAND ON HIS PROMISES! He will provide Calmness during the storm. He will provide Joy in time of sorrow. He will provide during your Time of Need. All you need to do is….. TRUST and BELIEVE IN HIM! PRAYERFULLY KNOCK and He will Answer to pull you through!