PRAYER: EXPERIMENT TO JOURNEY

On February 22, 2012, I started participating in an experiment with National Community Church in Washington, D.C. called the 7:14 Experiment. I was joining with a group of NCCer’s in a different time zone to humble myself before God and seek His face, out of obedience to 2 Chronicles 7:14.  “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, pray, seek, crave, and require of necessity my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.” AMP

 

Mark Batterson, (one of the speakers from District Connection 2011), is one of my favorite authors, as of late.  His life challenges mine.  As a leader I am looking for mentors that will speak into my life and stretch me in my Christian walk. 

There I was, caught in the act by my very own daughter.  At first glance, my daughter miss-judged my posture and asked, “Mom, are you ok?”  My husband, who was sitting in the living room then asked, “What happened”?  So much for focused prayer and this was just the first day! 

As I knelt on one knee in front of my kitchen sink that day it became abundantly clear that I obviously hadn’t modeled this posture of prayer before my daughter.  To tell you the truth, I felt out of practice, awkward, even a bit self-conscious!  Truly, I had made a commitment that at first seemed to be an easy one as a Christian and especially as a pastor’s wife!  I was raised in church.  What was so different this time?

Something as simple as bowing my knees in prayer was becoming a fight; a difficulty!  The decision was made online and a reminder text sent to me each morning at 4:13 am and yet a fight ensued almost every morning right around 7:14am each morning!  I’ve never encountered this unique of a fight.  My husband and I over the past 2 years have set the alarms on our phones to go off at 7:14 am and pm to pray for revival in America.  And yet we hadn’t changed our posture; our position in prayer!  We had missed a key ingredient in prayer; HUMILITY!  In bowing my knees, I made a conscious decision to submit; to honor Him by humbling myself and acknowledging his Lordship in my life. 

This 7:14 experiment was to last 40 days. They say that it takes 21 days to form a habit.  This was a humility habit.  Have I made it a habit yet?  Yes, but not without a few days of missing the mark.  The key is to keep pressing through!  As I bow my knees in true humility and obedience each day I know that my life will continue to be changed dramatically.  I have seen a hunger develop for more of God’s Word and this increased appetite has motivated, even compelled me to exercise it out through prayer! I am determined to model this act of humility, to keep my heart postured and my body positioned to pray and seek His face!  

I want to challenge you to join the 7:14 journey with me in praying for revival, not just here in America but around the world. Find out more about the 7:14 Journey at www.rossahill.com.  You will receive an email from him each day to encourage you in your journey to pray and seek His Face for revival!  Our goal is to have One Million prayer warriors.  Join the7:14 Journey today!

Tabi Rogers serves as our Area Leader in the Redwood Section and is on Staff at Cornerstone Church in Crescent City, CA.

FIGHTING THE WIND

As is common in the adventures of my life, I found myself again, along the rocky cliffs of Santa Cruz. The weather was stormy, windy, and cold. One step outside of my car, and I realized I had forgotten my jacket. So I ventured quickly to the edge of the ocean to absorb for a few brief moments the violent beauty that I have grown to love. The ocean's ripples were seen everywhere as the wind blew across the face of the sea. The waves crashed along the edge of the coast, creating a beautiful sound only heard in nature. I enjoyed every minute of it.

I only had a few moments, so I quickly jumped back in my car, and headed to church. It was on this drive to that I saw for a brief moment the vivid contrast to what I just experienced. Four children stood fighting the wind throwing rocks.  It was picture perfect really. Now I am sure that they were having the time of their life, fighting the sea as they would throw pebbles at the ocean with everything they had. Keep in mind, they weren't just tossing them over the cliff with half efforts. No, they were heaving with everything they had, little rocks against the violent wind. It was an epic battle, with no hope of victory for the four valiant warriors.

It reminded me of how we often fight against the wind.

It seems like that is how we are with God sometimes. Our futile attempts to fight Him, is liking throwing rocks at the wind. He comes to bring winds of change that will be to our benefit, and the first thing we do is pick up our rocks of tradition to fight this change. We throw our pebbles because we don't like the winds of change that God is bringing. It may threaten our positions of comfort, power and traditions (we have them even as youth pastors and leaders!) Yet, these are the very things that God wants to crash against. It is the very reason he is shaking us up. 

It reminded me of the story of Jonah.  When you read this story, you find a person who is not only fighting God, but running the opposite way.  He went against the wind.  In the process of fighting God, he faced more chaos and calamity than he could have imagined.  I’m sure he didn’t realize the fight would quite literally take him to the bottom.  He wanted his comforts, God wanted his calling.

In our fighting the wind, what do we miss?  We miss the opportunity to allow God to use us in the greater capacity he has destined for us.  We miss what he has purposed for us, and in the end, we are only left worn out from fighting.   Our fight reveals in us a lack of faith that God will do what He promises.  Maybe we are fighting because we are comfortable and secure.  Our fear of changing something might lead to failure.  Perhaps our fight is the unknown, and our assumptions lead us to the worst of ideas, so it’s better to keep our ministry as it has always been.

It takes faith to make change to a ministry, to start a new ministry, to bring on leaders, to place ministry in the hands of students, to do an outreach that you’ve never done before, and to do whatever God might be asking of you.  But that’s just the thing.  To fight it already leads to the failure you are living in fear of.  Fighting the wind guarantees that failure will come.  It takes faith to embrace the wind. 

I will be first to tell you I do not like change. I do not like being thrown off the course that I have set in the sea of life, yet it seems so often that God brings along the wind, because He knows what is needed.   There is a greater cause to be had.  There is ministry to be done.  There is a calling to be fulfilled. It is in these travailing winds that I find God moving me toward who he desires me to be and what he desires me to do, in faith.

I guess what made the image of the kids fighting against the wind, is that I saw myself standing on those shores. I am spiritually, emotionally, and foolishly throwing rocks against the wind. I guess it is time to stop, and stand with my face in the wind, and enjoy the ripples and tides that God has brought to me during this time, and effectively move toward what God has for me personally and in ministry.  

What is God moving you toward?   What is He challenging you to do?  It's time to embrace the wind.

Scott Tuttle

Operations and Events Director

Student Ministries 

LOCAL EVANGELISM

“You have a horrible job. You go to work early and come home late. You rush around everywhere. And when you are home there are always people coming over at all hours. You have a beautiful yard, too bad you never get to enjoy it. I don’t know what kind of church you work at but I’d never want to be a part of something like that. My life is way better than that.”

Talk about letting the air out of the balloon. I’d spent a couple years waving and trying to make small talk with my next-door neighbor and this is the first serious conversation we ever had.

Of course he was right. If all he knew about my family was what he observed through his kitchen window his synopsis was dead on. Everything he said was true. I was working like crazy at the church, but in three years, had done little more than shake my neighbors’ hands and exchange names.

This story by Doug Fields is challenging and convicting. It forces you to ask the question, “am I doing all I can to live like Christ did or do I just simply go to church?” If you allow it, it will make you do a self-check on the way you have been living. Has it looked like Christ or have you just branded the cross and called it good?

The amount of Christians in America is dropping, I believe it is because we are no longer looking like “aliens” (for a reference, please consider your Bible, not a study on UFO’s).  The U. S. population continues to show signs of becoming less religious, with one out of every five Americans failing to indicate a religious identity.

Some Statistics on Christian Evangelism:

-          Ninety-five percent of all Christians have never won a soul to Christ.

-          Eighty percent of all Christians do not consistently witness for Christ.

-          Less than two percent are involved in the ministry of evangelism.

-          Seventy-one percent do not give toward the financing of the great Commission.

Another denomination did a survey on its leadership ministries. The results are as follows:

• 63% of the leadership in this denomination, including deacons and elders, have not led one stranger to Jesus in the last two years through the method of “Go Ye” evangelism.
• 49% of the leadership ministries spend zero time in an average week ministering outside of the church.
• 89% of the leadership ministries have zero time reserved on their list of weekly priorities for going out to evangelize.
• 99% of the leadership ministries believe that every Christian, including leadership, has been commanded to preach the gospel to a lost world.
• 97% believe that if the leadership had a greater conviction and involvement in evangelism, that it would be an example for the church to follow.
• 96% of the leadership believe their churches would have grown faster if they would have been more involved in evangelism.

I wonder if our denomination would be too far off? We can’t just simply be Christians we have to win others!

Sources :

Fields, Doug “Street Level Evangelism, Where is the Space for the Local Evangelist,” by Michael Parrott, Acts Evangelism, Spokane, WA, 1993, pp. 9-11.    ARIS 2008 Survey

John Zick

Youth Culture Specialist

NCN Student Ministries

COFFEE AND LEADERSHIP

If you live in a city like mine, you have as many Starbucks as you do fast food restaurants combined.  I think my town is now averaging one Starbucks per person.  While that might be slight exaggeration (or not!), Starbucks has significantly impacted our culture and changed the way we view coffee, and how we buy it.  Many of us who are reading this will at some point this week, if not today, have gone to or will be going to a Starbucks for a cup of coffee.   24 percent of Starbucks costumers will visit them 16 times a month.  Love them or hate them Starbucks has truly made an impact.  

Yet it’s not just about coffee.  If it was, we would be content with going to Denny’s or buying it in a store only.  Perhaps there is something far more significant going on that we can consider.  Starbucks has learned an intricate understanding of how to connect with people and offer them something that brings them back time and time again.  Starbucks has taken a centuries old product and has effectively found a way to use it to connect with people in a relevant fashion for the 21^st century. 

Leonard Sweet, in his book “The Gospel According to Starbucks” highlights what he calls his E.P.I.C. model of connecting and impacting our ever shifting and changing culture.  According to Sweet, people are desiring “the irresistible attraction of an authentic experience.”  Perhaps there is something we can see in how Starbucks attracts people to their stores, that we can use to better understand how to draw a generation into our churches and ministries.

The message of Christ is as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago.  Healing, redemption, and freedom continue to be found in Him.  Acts 2:1-4 conveys well the power of the E.P.I.C. model in the life of the local church. Here are some things to consider in the EPIC Model:

Experiential –  Acts 2:2 “Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.”

 “Starbucks biggest obsession is ensuring that no one has a bad experience in one of its stores.”  If a company that simply selling a product has this level of passion for its customers, how much more should we as pastors and ministers work and strive to make sure that we are offering opportunities for authentic encounters with God and people?  The believers in Acts experienced the power of the Holy Spirit and it was this catalyst that set their course as they set the world on fire.

In a world full of media manipulation and false realities, many are looking for an authentic experience.  We can all look back and remember the encounters we had at an altar.  What are we doing to create and enable these authentic encounters with God for the next generation?   How are we taking what we are teaching our students and turning it in to an opportunity to be experienced?

Participatory- Acts 2:4 “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues.”

The reality of following Christ doesn’t end at an encounter with God and our experience at the altar.  It is where it begins. When the Holy Spirit fell upon the young church in Acts, it empowered them to go out from the upper room to impact their world.  The Holy Spirit continues to impact people.  He enables them through his Spirit and the gifts and talents he has given them to do ministry, and to actively be a part of the church.

So often, a person comes to an altar, has an encounter with God, and it is left at that.  What are we doing to actively engage our students in ministry, in relationships and in their life in Christ? My faith was deepened not only by through study, but by participating in the life of the church, leading ministries, being a part of drama teams, and going on missions trips.   How are we using our ministry as an opportunity to engage students in to the life of the church?  

Image-Rich.  Acts 2:3 ^“They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.”

God speaks in more than just words.  Yet sometimes that is what we have reduced Him to.  The scriptures not only tell us about the baptism encounter in the upper room, it gives us a visual image of what was taking place.  Can you imagine what it was must have been like to look around and see this taking place?

God spoke to Moses in a burning bush.   He revealed himself to a nation recently freed from bondage as a pillar of fire.  Christ spoke regularly in parables, and Paul consistently used images within his culture to relate the message of Christ.  It amazes me that we have taken an image rich text, and have somehow found a way to make it boring. 

The Author of life understands the power of images.  It’s why we stand in awe as we look in to the sea.  It’s why we hike through the majestic mountains of the Sierra Nevada.  What are we doing to bring to life to the reality of scriptures?  Using multiple venues of media, drama, interactive elements, and more leave greater opportunity for long term impact.  I am sure God could have sent Moses a letter or a prophet, but I am quite sure the burning bush was a little more effective in getting Moses’ attention, and conveying what God was wanting to speak to him.

Connecting - Acts 2:1 - “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.”

Somehow, I don’t think the upper room encounter would have been as impacting if it was just one person. There is something to be said when we experience life and God together.  Can you imagine being the only person in a stadium as you watch a sporting event?  1 person cheering isn’t quite as impacting as 50,000 people cheering. 

Leonard Sweet points out that to many, coffee shops like Starbucks are not about the coffee.  It’s about a place to connect.   How often have you met with a friend over coffee, or moved a staff meeting to a coffee shop?  We do this because the environment is set up to allow for fostering connections.  People desire to connect with others.  What are we doing to make our ministries a place students want to connect with others and God?  People are looking for connections.  They desire relationships.  They want to be a part of something bigger than them. 

Our identities are often measure in who we are connected to.  From sports teams, religious affiliations, share experiences, ancestry, and more, we find our identity and relation in these shared connections.  What are you doing to make are ministry a common shared connection that allows students to develop healthy relationships with others and God?

What are we doing to create an EPIC model of ministry in our churches?  What are we doing to allow for an experience that is authentic?  What are we doing to get in students involved by participating in the life of the church? What are we using image-rich communication to bring to life the message of the Gospel? How are we fostering opportunities for connection to establish healthy relationships in our churches and ministries?

God desires a holistic approach to life and ministry.  Let us do all that we can do to cultivate a culture of spiritual growth, and personal development that engages students at their deepest level so that they become who God intended them to be!

Abe Daniel

Student Ministries Director

NCN Student Ministries

TIME TO ADVANCE

If you are reading this, then you are either ending a battle, in the middle of one, or will be walking in to one.  Hope this encourages you!  The reality is we all will face battles that look to sidetrack us from God’s purpose for us.  Today is not the day to slow down, stay down, or retreat, but instead, it is a time to advance!  To advance is to move forward, to bring to the front.  God wants us to continue to move forward with what He has purposed us to do.

Colossians 4:5 says to “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.”

Even in the midst of a difficult situation, we are not to retreat.  We are to make the most of every opportunity that God places before us. 

Here are some keys to advancing:

1.  Seek First.  God ordains opportunities that he places before us for us to take hold of to do what he is calling us to do.  The woman in scripture who was ill pressed through the crowd and did not give up until she had touched the hem of Christ’s garment.  There was nothing that she allowed to get in the way of accomplishing her goal.  We cannot let things get in the way of what we truly believe God is asking us to accomplish.

  

2.   Discard the Past.  We cannot let failures keep us back.  John Maxwell wrote a book called “Failing Forward.”  In his book he challenges the reader to use failures as an opportunity to propel themselves forward, to learn, and to grow.  Many things set us back:  offenses, past mistakes, or even our past successes.  God did not intend for us to stay there.  We must be compelled to move forward to what God has for us to do.

  

3.   Enlarge Your Capacity.  Expand your influence.  Don’t let battles stop your advance. Look for opportunities to love others.  Look for opportunities to bless others by giving.  Keep focusing on the task at hand and work diligently with what God has placed before you.  In all these things, lead with a humble heart, knowing that God has placed you in this capacity to lead the ministry He has given you.   Work to increase your capacity and influence where God enables you.

      4.  Attitude of Gratefulness and Joy.  In the midst of a battle, we can grow faint of heart.  We can lose our resolve, or become easily frustrated.  We must work to maintain an attitude of thanksgiving, and never stop expressing gratitude for all that God has given us.  One of the great ways we can ‘refill out tank’ is through thankfulness.  Half of the battle is not what is happening externally and physically before us, but what is taking place emotionally and spiritually inside of us.  The arsenal of thanksgiving enables us to continue to advance in the midst of trial and struggle.

      5.  Dream Again.  One of the great tragedies of battles is the loss of vision.  Getting trapped in struggles becomes the abyss where dreams vanish, and hopes fade.  Find ways to dream again.  Make a point of dreaming about what God can do, and don’t get stuck struggling in current circumstances.  God will bring a resurrection of vision.  The battle will be over, the struggle will end, and you will be left with a fresh vision and a new dream of what God desires to accomplish.

Even in the midst of a battle, keep your head up, and keep advancing.  God had the path already laid out before you.  Find those who can be a listening ear, and continue to trust that God will get you through whatever battle you are in or might face soon.  As we continue to advance forward, we will accomplish all that God has purposed for us to do!

Abe Daniel serves as our Student Ministries Director 

for the Northern California and Nevada Student Ministries 

Office of the Northern California and Nevada Assemblies of God