After speaking at a wonderful Church on the West side of Chicago today, I was talking with a new member at their after service pot-luck stocked with delicious Filipino food! He is in the automotive industry and works for a major Japanese manufacturer. We were talking about how it is generally a waste of time to try to gain business in a cold market verses trying to do so in a warm market. There are certain products and clients which are easier to pair then others.
Before going into ministry full time, I was in sales. I once worked for a company setting businesses up for Visa and Mastercard processing. After working for the company for over a year, I tracked my sales record and discovered that the majority of my income came by signing contracts with a very specific group of people, middle aged females who carried titles having to do with office management. On the flip side, I did not fare well securing contracts with males who were owners or managers of the businesses. After figuring this out, I no longer wasted my time trying to gain the business from the men and focused on the middle aged women. My income more then doubled. There was a lady sales associate in the same office as I who had the exact opposite Warm and Cold Market. She could not for the life of her sell a contract with a middle aged woman, but she could sign contracts all day long with male owners and managers. Interesting? And so at times, we traded leads, experienced less frustration and we both made more money.
There are a couple of things that we can learn from this. First, people don't tend to buy into a product or a concept based on the quality of the product itself, but more because they connected, or at least were not intimidated by the person who introduced them to it.
With my business mind, turned Kingdom mind, I of course love to think about correlations...
At TFI Gateway Church in Manila, we are reaching all kinds of people and we have several segments of the population which we are targeting. One group that we specifically hear the voice of the Holy Spirit leading us toward is call center agents.
For those of you unfamiliar with the call center industry, there are offices in the Philippines, India and in other countries which field calls generally in customer service or in telephone sales for companies in western nations. A good example of this is that right now, less then 3 miles from our home in Manila, JP Morgan Chase Bank is opening a new call center and is conducting a massive hiring in order to handle calls for their customers in America. There are more then 800,000 call center employees in Manila alone. They are a nocturnal group of people who work through the night while it is day in America, Canada and Europe. They have developed something of their own own sub-culture as well as schedule. Most would not attend normally scheduled services or even traditional Churches anymore. When I say traditional, I mean Churches conducting services and programs in the way Churches used to do things... not 30 years ago, but 3 years ago.
We are quickly moving towards becoming a Church which meets the needs of this very specific group of people by conducting meetings at odd times and with a unique approach. We have a burning desire to serve this group of people and it is growing day by day as we continue to work and pray. Right now, we are in more of a planning and trial mode, already with great results.
As a Spirit led Church, we don't have to figure out what our warm market is. Instead, we must listen for the voice of God, telling us what to do and how to do it. As a matter of fact, it is equally important not to waste time by pursuing ministry in segments which God has not asked us to serve and has asked others to serve instead. I believe that God wants the Church to fish for every kind of fish, using all kinds of bait and all kinds of vessels. And that every Church will receive instructions from God as to who to serve and how best to serve them.
Fishing requires preparation. A lady in a Church I pastored a few years ago brought many people to the Church who received Jesus. Every single one of them, after they received the Lord, we willingly handed off to other Churches and she was very disappointed because our Church seemingly did not grow from her efforts. But the Kingdom of God grew! Some did not speak English, and ours was an English speaking Church. Others needed support in areas that we had no support groups or expertise. The other Churches did a great job following up with them and discipling them. A beautiful reward about it is that there were also those saved in other Churches who ended up joining our Church and growing through wonderful and focused mentorship. Our Church and the ministry we conducted was not only a good fit, but a divine fit specifically for them.
God's plan is perfect and when Churches function & network together without competitiveness, in unity of the Spirit, not only does the harvest increase, but the higher goal of discipleship is reached as well. We need to prepare specific ministries which will care for the needs of those who the Lord will place into our care. And for those our Church God is not asking us to care for, let us generously and humbly help them to find the care they need somewhere in the Body of Christ even in another Church. This is my dream and I believe I am dreaming one of God's dreams...
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
A Dwelling for God
I was trying to sleep while en route to the USA on a flight yesterday. Everyone around me was snoozing and the flight attendants were nowhere to be found but I couldn't do it... My spirit and mind were consumed with one thing. Building the house of God!!
We are in the midst of raising up a new work in Manila and it has been a combination of exciting and painful. Exciting because of the success in winning souls, performing miracles and touching lives for God and painful because of the struggle, sacrifice and warfare. I wouldn't trade it for anything! The biggest struggle at that moment was that I didn't even want to be gone these next 3 Sundays even though I had left the Church in good hands... but we have run out of funds and need to come to the States to raise enough to keep us going for a few more months on the mission field as the Church continues to grow.
I began to thank the Lord for the amazing opportunity He has given us and especially for surrounding us with amazing people of like mind who are assisting us in the work in Manila. And for those who are praying with us and supporting us from a distance.
I asked the Lord, "Why is it that there are people who are fully committed, with an unusual desire and preoccupation to build Your House?" "Why am I like this?" There is something inside of me that is consumed with saving souls, improving lives, moving in the supernatural, occupying the earth and populating heaven; even organizing a Church.
This incredible and insatiable desire to build the Church comes from God. When a person loves God, His Word and the Holy Spirit, there is an awareness of Jesus' work on this earth, filling heaven for eternity by first filling the Church. It is His chosen way to complete His mission of finding and saving those who are lost.
I reached for my Bible and as usual, this amazing book opened right to a page where words jumped out and gripped my attention.
Psalm 132 (NIV) 1 O LORD, remember David and all the hardships he endured. 2 He swore an oath to the LORD and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob: 3 "I will not enter my house or go to my bed- 4 I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, 5 till I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob."
As for me, I want to be like David in this way more and more... not resting until yet another dwelling place for the Lord is fully established in Manila and beyond!
We are in the midst of raising up a new work in Manila and it has been a combination of exciting and painful. Exciting because of the success in winning souls, performing miracles and touching lives for God and painful because of the struggle, sacrifice and warfare. I wouldn't trade it for anything! The biggest struggle at that moment was that I didn't even want to be gone these next 3 Sundays even though I had left the Church in good hands... but we have run out of funds and need to come to the States to raise enough to keep us going for a few more months on the mission field as the Church continues to grow.
I began to thank the Lord for the amazing opportunity He has given us and especially for surrounding us with amazing people of like mind who are assisting us in the work in Manila. And for those who are praying with us and supporting us from a distance.
I asked the Lord, "Why is it that there are people who are fully committed, with an unusual desire and preoccupation to build Your House?" "Why am I like this?" There is something inside of me that is consumed with saving souls, improving lives, moving in the supernatural, occupying the earth and populating heaven; even organizing a Church.
This incredible and insatiable desire to build the Church comes from God. When a person loves God, His Word and the Holy Spirit, there is an awareness of Jesus' work on this earth, filling heaven for eternity by first filling the Church. It is His chosen way to complete His mission of finding and saving those who are lost.
I reached for my Bible and as usual, this amazing book opened right to a page where words jumped out and gripped my attention.
Psalm 132 (NIV) 1 O LORD, remember David and all the hardships he endured. 2 He swore an oath to the LORD and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob: 3 "I will not enter my house or go to my bed- 4 I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, 5 till I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob."
As for me, I want to be like David in this way more and more... not resting until yet another dwelling place for the Lord is fully established in Manila and beyond!
Friday, January 8, 2010
A New Years Resolution by Al
Hi Guys! I want to share a New Years Resolution by one of our TFI Gateway key members, Al Gonzaga! I think it is an important time of year that we all reflect and re-focus. Be blessed!:
My New Year’s Resolution always boils down to one thing. More than anything I want to be the kind of person who lives a life devoted to Christ with all my heart.
Each year God shows me a problem I need to overcome or something about how I live my daily life that needs to change so that I can become more centered on Christ.
Three of our Bible heroes inspire us to live with singular devotion to the Lord:
• David: In the midst of his painful and frightening desert trials over about ten years in which he was horribly mistreated and nearly killed he prayed, “One thing I ask, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life… My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’” (Psalm 27:4, 8).
• Mary: She set aside her kitchen work to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to him and she received his affirmation: “There are many things that can be worried about, but only one thing is needed – it is the best thing – and Mary has chosen it!” (Luke 10:41-42, my paraphrase).
• Paul: He counted his many accomplishments and blessings as dung compared to the “surpassing greatness of knowing Christ” (Philippians 3:8). He expressed his life ambition, “One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).
This year, more than ever, I want to seek the best thing, to be more devoted to Christ, don’t you?
How do we grow to be devoted to Christ?
How do we make real changes to how we live our daily lives as an expression of love for God?
How do we overcome worry or anger?
How do we learn to rejoice in trials?
Pray without ceasing?
Love difficult people?
Not by trying hard! That won’t last very long. Or it’ll just make us proud!
The way to make a real character change – to learn, grow, or heal in any area – is by training. Look to Jesus as your Coach and “work out” with him. “Train yourself to be godly” Paul advises us (1 Timothy 4:7).
An important part of any spiritual training program is meditating on Scripture.
To meditate on Scripture is more than reading it. And its different than studying it. When you meditate on Scripture you pray through God’s Word by applying it to the struggles and opportunities of your life. You become as a bee that stops on a flower and lingers, staying on the flower to suck out the nectar, using it to make sweet honey.
HAPPY AND BLESSED NEW YEAR!
In Jesus,
Al
Gonzaga Aloysius Y Se. Tan
My New Year’s Resolution always boils down to one thing. More than anything I want to be the kind of person who lives a life devoted to Christ with all my heart.
Each year God shows me a problem I need to overcome or something about how I live my daily life that needs to change so that I can become more centered on Christ.
Three of our Bible heroes inspire us to live with singular devotion to the Lord:
• David: In the midst of his painful and frightening desert trials over about ten years in which he was horribly mistreated and nearly killed he prayed, “One thing I ask, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life… My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’” (Psalm 27:4, 8).
• Mary: She set aside her kitchen work to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to him and she received his affirmation: “There are many things that can be worried about, but only one thing is needed – it is the best thing – and Mary has chosen it!” (Luke 10:41-42, my paraphrase).
• Paul: He counted his many accomplishments and blessings as dung compared to the “surpassing greatness of knowing Christ” (Philippians 3:8). He expressed his life ambition, “One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).
This year, more than ever, I want to seek the best thing, to be more devoted to Christ, don’t you?
How do we grow to be devoted to Christ?
How do we make real changes to how we live our daily lives as an expression of love for God?
How do we overcome worry or anger?
How do we learn to rejoice in trials?
Pray without ceasing?
Love difficult people?
Not by trying hard! That won’t last very long. Or it’ll just make us proud!
The way to make a real character change – to learn, grow, or heal in any area – is by training. Look to Jesus as your Coach and “work out” with him. “Train yourself to be godly” Paul advises us (1 Timothy 4:7).
An important part of any spiritual training program is meditating on Scripture.
To meditate on Scripture is more than reading it. And its different than studying it. When you meditate on Scripture you pray through God’s Word by applying it to the struggles and opportunities of your life. You become as a bee that stops on a flower and lingers, staying on the flower to suck out the nectar, using it to make sweet honey.
HAPPY AND BLESSED NEW YEAR!
In Jesus,
Al
Gonzaga Aloysius Y Se. Tan
Monday, December 21, 2009
My Best Christmas Ever
One person who we interact with here in Manila has been so devastated by the Ondoy Flood earlier this year that she is in a mode of hinting to us and to everyone we and she knows that she could use some extra help. We have already helped her and we are continuing to help her which will include a Christmas blessing that she and her family will receive on New Years Eve.
In the meanwhile, we have to watch our attitudes so that we don’t get annoyed at all of the hinting, remembering that she is in a desperate situation. She has a decent home but they don’t have a stitch of furniture anymore, barely were able to afford to re-outfit their kids for school and she does laundry every night because her family members only have a few items of clothing. As with most of the victims of the flood, it will take more then a year to recover.
This constant hinting has gone to a new intensity the closer we get to Christmas because of the expectation that most of us have that we should be able to do special things such as exchange gifts and share special meals (multiple times) in order to... celebrate the birth of Jesus?
This last Sunday, I delivered a sermon entitled “Egyptian Escape” which is about the account in Matthew 2:13-15 where we read that Joseph was instructed by an angel to escape with Jesus and Mary to Egypt until Herod died. This was to avoid Jesus being killed after the Magi foiled his plot.
One of the main points we can understand from this account is that after a great victory will often come a brutal attack. Sometimes, God will direct us to escape to a foreign place that we don’t want to go for a season. Jesus was not a slave in Egypt as the Children of Israel had been at one time, but it was definitely uncomfortable. If living in a foreign place was not uncomfortable at some level, don’t you think there would be more missionaries to hard places?! :-) I don’t imagine that Mary felt that abandoning their home, business & disappearing from their family was any small thing! It’s good that the Magi had endowed them with riches enough to sustain them for this season... God’s provision for sure!
To give a summery of this teaching, it is important that we come back and don’t get stuck in our Egypt. You can delve further into this by reading the original prophesy quoted by Matthew in Hosea 11. A breakthrough point from this prophesy is that Jesus went to Egypt and was then called out of Egypt and we can follow Him by following His roar. In my opinion, the Roar of His Word! Amen! Don’t get me started...
Back on track, I shared about one of my Egypt experiences which has stayed with me to become what I consider my best Christmas ever.
This is more then 15 years ago now. I had experienced a severe business failure. What this meant is that we moved from a large and comfortable home to a small and cold apartment. We called it “cozy” but that was to throw anyone off the scent who might have discovered we had been forced to downsize. Even worse, we went from driving beautiful cars to driving a car that I could not determine the color of. It was so oxidized that I could not tell if it had originally been green, or brown, or...?? My two kids were so horrified that they no longer wanted me to drop them off at school. They instructed me to drop them off a block and a half away and they walked the rest of the way. EGYPT!!!
I went into a depression that I almost didn’t make it out of which lasted nearly two years. My wife HAD to work for the first time during our marriage... I had previously always brought home more then enough bread.
We didn’t have a Christmas tree for the first time ever, not even one present for anyone in the house and we were anticipating not tasting turkey, ham or any other holiday food. We were eating toast with small amounts of melted cheese (sometimes) and top ramen (all the time).
It was a few days before Christmas and it was cold. My oldest son discovered a notice on the door informing us that our power was going to be shut off due to non-payment of our electric bill. I didn’t have it. EGYPT!!!
I heard that the Salvation Army was paying power bills as their primary form of charity at the time. I swallowed my pride and went to their office. I sat in the car for what seemed like an eternity as I built up the courage to go in... Or was it as I killed my nasty pride. I was an arrogant, a self made person who had never received charity before in my life. And that was the problem. I wanted to be self made. And this was what I believe God wanted to deal with. My attitude, my pride, my arrogance. I told the congregation yesterday that they wouldn’t have wanted to know me back then... and that I wouldn’t have wanted to know them either!
I went in. Nobody else was there except for one secretary. I took that as an answer to prayer that God was allowing me to remain mostly anonymous! The young Jamaican woman took my disconnection notice, called the power company and handled it in about 3 minutes. She then asked me some details about my family.
When I walked in the door of the house, my wife anxiously asked if it had been handled. I gave her the good news, but I was still rocked by the ordeal of killing my pride. I was grateful but embarrassed.
Not long after I arrived home, a van pulled up from Saint Vincent De Paul, the Catholic Charity. That Jamaican secretary had called them! They put a tree in our place and filled the space under it with presents for Chad and Devin with their names on them. Then they brought bags of groceries in! Unbelievable!
To this day, I am thankful for and occasionally support the Salvation Army. I was thrilled when they received the 1 billion dollar donation from Mrs. Croc, the wife of the founder of McDonald’s a few years ago. Praise God!
I firmly believe that God changed me on that day and in that season of my life. I would not be where I am today if it had not been for being forced to overcome my pride while living in Egypt.
I know that I need more Egypt experiences in order to continue to become the person that God wants me to be. I’m in EGYPT now in some ways. How about you? This is sure to be another stellar Christmas filled with anticipation, hope and adoration of Jesus. It will be a great year for you too, no matter your economic condition... as long as you follow the roar of Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah out of Egypt as well! Let us not turn the 11 day journey into a 40 year journey as the children of Israel did long ago...
Let us stand on His Word and on His promises! The best is yet to come, partly because He will bless us more and more, but more importantly, we will be more and more ready to receive His blessings! For we are stewards of God and “it is required of stewards that we be found faithful!”
In the meanwhile, we have to watch our attitudes so that we don’t get annoyed at all of the hinting, remembering that she is in a desperate situation. She has a decent home but they don’t have a stitch of furniture anymore, barely were able to afford to re-outfit their kids for school and she does laundry every night because her family members only have a few items of clothing. As with most of the victims of the flood, it will take more then a year to recover.
This constant hinting has gone to a new intensity the closer we get to Christmas because of the expectation that most of us have that we should be able to do special things such as exchange gifts and share special meals (multiple times) in order to... celebrate the birth of Jesus?
This last Sunday, I delivered a sermon entitled “Egyptian Escape” which is about the account in Matthew 2:13-15 where we read that Joseph was instructed by an angel to escape with Jesus and Mary to Egypt until Herod died. This was to avoid Jesus being killed after the Magi foiled his plot.
One of the main points we can understand from this account is that after a great victory will often come a brutal attack. Sometimes, God will direct us to escape to a foreign place that we don’t want to go for a season. Jesus was not a slave in Egypt as the Children of Israel had been at one time, but it was definitely uncomfortable. If living in a foreign place was not uncomfortable at some level, don’t you think there would be more missionaries to hard places?! :-) I don’t imagine that Mary felt that abandoning their home, business & disappearing from their family was any small thing! It’s good that the Magi had endowed them with riches enough to sustain them for this season... God’s provision for sure!
To give a summery of this teaching, it is important that we come back and don’t get stuck in our Egypt. You can delve further into this by reading the original prophesy quoted by Matthew in Hosea 11. A breakthrough point from this prophesy is that Jesus went to Egypt and was then called out of Egypt and we can follow Him by following His roar. In my opinion, the Roar of His Word! Amen! Don’t get me started...
Back on track, I shared about one of my Egypt experiences which has stayed with me to become what I consider my best Christmas ever.
This is more then 15 years ago now. I had experienced a severe business failure. What this meant is that we moved from a large and comfortable home to a small and cold apartment. We called it “cozy” but that was to throw anyone off the scent who might have discovered we had been forced to downsize. Even worse, we went from driving beautiful cars to driving a car that I could not determine the color of. It was so oxidized that I could not tell if it had originally been green, or brown, or...?? My two kids were so horrified that they no longer wanted me to drop them off at school. They instructed me to drop them off a block and a half away and they walked the rest of the way. EGYPT!!!
I went into a depression that I almost didn’t make it out of which lasted nearly two years. My wife HAD to work for the first time during our marriage... I had previously always brought home more then enough bread.
We didn’t have a Christmas tree for the first time ever, not even one present for anyone in the house and we were anticipating not tasting turkey, ham or any other holiday food. We were eating toast with small amounts of melted cheese (sometimes) and top ramen (all the time).
It was a few days before Christmas and it was cold. My oldest son discovered a notice on the door informing us that our power was going to be shut off due to non-payment of our electric bill. I didn’t have it. EGYPT!!!
I heard that the Salvation Army was paying power bills as their primary form of charity at the time. I swallowed my pride and went to their office. I sat in the car for what seemed like an eternity as I built up the courage to go in... Or was it as I killed my nasty pride. I was an arrogant, a self made person who had never received charity before in my life. And that was the problem. I wanted to be self made. And this was what I believe God wanted to deal with. My attitude, my pride, my arrogance. I told the congregation yesterday that they wouldn’t have wanted to know me back then... and that I wouldn’t have wanted to know them either!
I went in. Nobody else was there except for one secretary. I took that as an answer to prayer that God was allowing me to remain mostly anonymous! The young Jamaican woman took my disconnection notice, called the power company and handled it in about 3 minutes. She then asked me some details about my family.
When I walked in the door of the house, my wife anxiously asked if it had been handled. I gave her the good news, but I was still rocked by the ordeal of killing my pride. I was grateful but embarrassed.
Not long after I arrived home, a van pulled up from Saint Vincent De Paul, the Catholic Charity. That Jamaican secretary had called them! They put a tree in our place and filled the space under it with presents for Chad and Devin with their names on them. Then they brought bags of groceries in! Unbelievable!
To this day, I am thankful for and occasionally support the Salvation Army. I was thrilled when they received the 1 billion dollar donation from Mrs. Croc, the wife of the founder of McDonald’s a few years ago. Praise God!
I firmly believe that God changed me on that day and in that season of my life. I would not be where I am today if it had not been for being forced to overcome my pride while living in Egypt.
I know that I need more Egypt experiences in order to continue to become the person that God wants me to be. I’m in EGYPT now in some ways. How about you? This is sure to be another stellar Christmas filled with anticipation, hope and adoration of Jesus. It will be a great year for you too, no matter your economic condition... as long as you follow the roar of Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah out of Egypt as well! Let us not turn the 11 day journey into a 40 year journey as the children of Israel did long ago...
Let us stand on His Word and on His promises! The best is yet to come, partly because He will bless us more and more, but more importantly, we will be more and more ready to receive His blessings! For we are stewards of God and “it is required of stewards that we be found faithful!”
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Great Service with 2 Saved Today!
At the Church I spoke for in Shah Alam, Malaysia this morning, we had an incredible experience. The worship was over the top, the message was clear & strong and the response time at the altar was like it was out of a dream! The prophetic ministry was razer sharp and the Lord touched so many in an awesome way! But my favorite part was when two Tamil, Hindu guys came to the alter and I was honored to lead them in the prayer of salvation! Hearing them reject all other beliefs and put their trust in Jesus was awesome! As soon as they said "amen," the power of God hit them like a tsunami and they went down in the power of God and experienced His presence as they lay there side by side, spending precious "carpet time" with Jesus! This is what it's all about!!!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Group Foto from Youth Camp in Port Dickson, Malaysia
We had a great time at Youth Camp at Port Dickson in Malaysia! We're posing in front of an amazing climbing wall. The activities that the campers enjoyed between the sessions were team building, survival type. This rustic site is used by businesses and organizations but it worked great for our group as well. Fantastic! We were in the midst of palm tree groves (the kind that they harvest palm oil from) and the campers stayed in permanant tents. For those of you wondering, the other white guy in the picture is my friend Pastor Steffen from Germany, a committed servant of God who lives in Malaysia. 
Friday, November 20, 2009
"Overwhelmed"
The dictionary describes the word “overwhelm” as being upset, submerged or overthrown. You could say that to be overwhelmed means you have lost or been buried.
The Apostle Paul said that he was: (2 Corinthians 4:7-9)
hard pressed on every side – but not crushed
perplexed – but not in despair
persecuted – but not abandoned
struck down – but not destroyed
Often when I think I’m going under or when I have suffered a set back of some kind, the feeling that I have is that I am overwhelmed. When this happens, I just want to sit down right where I am even if it’s on the floor and just give up. I imagine it would be like that last moment just before you drown or when you are about to lose your grip while dangling high in the air just before plummeting to the ground.
I believe that though Paul FELT perplexed, his experience with God and more importantly, the Word of God told him different: that he should not despair. That when he was perplexed (didn’t understand why he was going through his challenges), that “God’s ways are higher then our ways.” When persecuted, he undoubtedly remembered that God’s Word promises persecutions but that God never abandons us while we are suffering through them. And that when he was struck down, knocked to his knees, that he was not destroyed and that he could by God’s power, get up again.
I want to turn the word “overwhelmed” into a SIGNAL. When we begin to feel overwhelmed, that is the time to turn the tide and overwhelm the enemy, overwhelm our circumstances, conducting spiritual warfare by using the Word of God! And if we are having difficulty releasing scripture from our mouths or going into effective prayer, then let’s get some music going to overwhelm our negative, depressive and defeated thoughts or maybe some group prayer.
One of the most important things that we must do in order to be able to speak up and rise up the way Paul did, is that we must overwhelm our own feelings, emotions and human understanding with the reality of God’s Kingdom in the light of His Word.
Another more common word in the Bible which is similar to “overwhelm” is “overcome.” Here are some scriptures to start overwhelming our emotions and circumstances with (all in NIV):
John 16:33"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
· What did Jesus say to do? “Take Heart!” That means BE ENCOURAGED!
1 John 4:4You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
1 John 5:4for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
· A hint on this one. You can’t overwhelm the world without FAITH
1 John 5:5Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
· Come on! You gotta believe it right NOW. It will be easier to believe it if you will start confessing these scriptures.
Another word that I associate with “overwhelmed” is “HELPLESS.” Helpless is how I feel when I’m overwhelmed. I get to a point that I realize that there is literally nothing else that I can do to affect or change a circumstance. This is how the flood victims here in Manila felt while they were watching their possessions destroyed or when a mother held the lifeless body of her drowned child. It is how the Father of a household feels who has lost his job and comes home after spending the day looking for a job with no good news and with no groceries and the family is going to go to bed hungry. This of course is more severe in the nations of the world with no welfare system. If they don’t have relatives with resources, they will eventually die of sickness or starvation.
Here’s the one I personally don’t love to experience: You have a deadline... maybe to pay something. You have been praying and praying and have truly done your best. You have believed that God would not allow His name to be tarnished by you being late. (Have you ever tried to use that one on the Lord? I have!) “God, you said that I am the head and not the tail, the lender and not the borrower!” And you really “felt it” while you were praying it!
Then the call comes from the landlord or the finance company and you find yourself saying these words. “I’m sorry but I simply don’t have it. I promise to pay as soon as I can. Thank you for your patience.” Then you hang up the phone (or worse, close the door) and that flood of despair comes. That unmistakeable disappointment that comes even causing you to question yourself. “God? Whatever it is, I’m sorry. Show me where my mistake was... I repent... Please help me to pay these bills, to find a good job, to manage my resources better.”
Some of you are probably wondering what it is that prompted me to write this. Well you are right that normally when a minister touches a subject, they have recently had dealings within the range of that subject in recent times whether they are willing to admit or not. OK... I’ll share :-)
I have a wonderful guy in my life who is a prayer partner and he has been used by God at times to supply our financial needs. He sent me a message several weeks ago saying that he was sending a donation of $300. Awesome! But it never arrived. He then sent me another message asking if I had received the $3,000. One zero makes a huge difference. I of course worked it out with him so that he was able to re-send the donation in a more reliable way. I was ecstatic that the $300 was a typo and that it was going to be 3K because that is really what we needed. We had recently come to the end of our financial rope having run out of funds and having only 30% of the support we need to survive. This large donation meant that we could go for probably three more months, a cause for many shouts of praise at our house!
When the funds arrived this morning, I found out that the typo was reversed from what I thought. The $3,000 was wrong and it really was $300. I immediately started thanking God for the $300 which is an amazing blessing. But at the same time, I started to wonder where the other $700 I have to have by tomorrow and the many hundreds more I will soon need will come from. It seems too late because international miracles take time... There went my human thinking again and I successfully turned a blessing into a mental struggle. I spent the next couple of hours battling that defeated feeling. I felt overwhelmed, helpless. I started wondering if maybe God isn’t with us here. If we need to go Stateside and hang up the ministry hat until this terrible economy gets better, if it ever gets better. I started to feel sorry for myself and started counting the number of letters, E-mails and messages I have sent to friends and people close to us asking for help that have not been answered. Not even a “no” or an “I’m sorry but we just don’t have it Pst Steve...” Ignored. Helpless. Overwhelmed.
I started crying in the car during the commute on the way to school with Ethan sitting beside me asking me, “Daddy, what’s wrong?!? Did someone hurt you? Tell me who it is and I’ll beat them up!” He is in that phase right now and it actually made me feel better.
But it’s not about feelings is it... I wrote this post and now I have read it for myself. I needed this! I hope you get something out of it too, but even if nobody ever reads it... it has already done me a world of good! I have been confessing and proclaiming these scriptures and I have been overwhelming my emotions and the devil himself! Then I received another green shoot in my wilderness. An SMS (text message) arrived at just the right time. Someone who I haven’t heard from in a long time said that even though he is going through a difficult time right now and just had his first baby, that God has told him to support our ministry $100 a month! My God! I needed that encouragement at just that moment! My little tears of depression turned into huge tears of joy and gratitude!! With that, we reached 40% of the support we need. Only 60% to go!
Just a few hours ago, the 70% seemed impossible but now 60% seems so within reach! What a difference FAITH makes!
I still need that miracle, but I know that it is en route and that though God seldom is early, He is never late! His timing and his method of distribution is perfect! I’m so encouraged right now that I want to run around the block several times and I probably will just as soon as I finish writing!
For those of you who have prayed for us, who are partnered with us and for those who have communicated, even saying “no” or “not at this time,” I want to say thank you so so much! You are awesome! For those of you have happened upon this post, please consider becoming a part of a mutual miracle and supporting our ministry. We need some pretty fast help. Thank you for your kind consideration my friend.
For more information about our ministry and the breakdown of our financial needs, please visit www.pastorstevemckinney.com . Details on how to send a donation are also listed at the top right hand side of this blog.
The Apostle Paul said that he was: (2 Corinthians 4:7-9)
hard pressed on every side – but not crushed
perplexed – but not in despair
persecuted – but not abandoned
struck down – but not destroyed
Often when I think I’m going under or when I have suffered a set back of some kind, the feeling that I have is that I am overwhelmed. When this happens, I just want to sit down right where I am even if it’s on the floor and just give up. I imagine it would be like that last moment just before you drown or when you are about to lose your grip while dangling high in the air just before plummeting to the ground.
I believe that though Paul FELT perplexed, his experience with God and more importantly, the Word of God told him different: that he should not despair. That when he was perplexed (didn’t understand why he was going through his challenges), that “God’s ways are higher then our ways.” When persecuted, he undoubtedly remembered that God’s Word promises persecutions but that God never abandons us while we are suffering through them. And that when he was struck down, knocked to his knees, that he was not destroyed and that he could by God’s power, get up again.
I want to turn the word “overwhelmed” into a SIGNAL. When we begin to feel overwhelmed, that is the time to turn the tide and overwhelm the enemy, overwhelm our circumstances, conducting spiritual warfare by using the Word of God! And if we are having difficulty releasing scripture from our mouths or going into effective prayer, then let’s get some music going to overwhelm our negative, depressive and defeated thoughts or maybe some group prayer.
One of the most important things that we must do in order to be able to speak up and rise up the way Paul did, is that we must overwhelm our own feelings, emotions and human understanding with the reality of God’s Kingdom in the light of His Word.
Another more common word in the Bible which is similar to “overwhelm” is “overcome.” Here are some scriptures to start overwhelming our emotions and circumstances with (all in NIV):
John 16:33"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
· What did Jesus say to do? “Take Heart!” That means BE ENCOURAGED!
1 John 4:4You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
1 John 5:4for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
· A hint on this one. You can’t overwhelm the world without FAITH
1 John 5:5Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
· Come on! You gotta believe it right NOW. It will be easier to believe it if you will start confessing these scriptures.
Another word that I associate with “overwhelmed” is “HELPLESS.” Helpless is how I feel when I’m overwhelmed. I get to a point that I realize that there is literally nothing else that I can do to affect or change a circumstance. This is how the flood victims here in Manila felt while they were watching their possessions destroyed or when a mother held the lifeless body of her drowned child. It is how the Father of a household feels who has lost his job and comes home after spending the day looking for a job with no good news and with no groceries and the family is going to go to bed hungry. This of course is more severe in the nations of the world with no welfare system. If they don’t have relatives with resources, they will eventually die of sickness or starvation.
Here’s the one I personally don’t love to experience: You have a deadline... maybe to pay something. You have been praying and praying and have truly done your best. You have believed that God would not allow His name to be tarnished by you being late. (Have you ever tried to use that one on the Lord? I have!) “God, you said that I am the head and not the tail, the lender and not the borrower!” And you really “felt it” while you were praying it!
Then the call comes from the landlord or the finance company and you find yourself saying these words. “I’m sorry but I simply don’t have it. I promise to pay as soon as I can. Thank you for your patience.” Then you hang up the phone (or worse, close the door) and that flood of despair comes. That unmistakeable disappointment that comes even causing you to question yourself. “God? Whatever it is, I’m sorry. Show me where my mistake was... I repent... Please help me to pay these bills, to find a good job, to manage my resources better.”
Some of you are probably wondering what it is that prompted me to write this. Well you are right that normally when a minister touches a subject, they have recently had dealings within the range of that subject in recent times whether they are willing to admit or not. OK... I’ll share :-)
I have a wonderful guy in my life who is a prayer partner and he has been used by God at times to supply our financial needs. He sent me a message several weeks ago saying that he was sending a donation of $300. Awesome! But it never arrived. He then sent me another message asking if I had received the $3,000. One zero makes a huge difference. I of course worked it out with him so that he was able to re-send the donation in a more reliable way. I was ecstatic that the $300 was a typo and that it was going to be 3K because that is really what we needed. We had recently come to the end of our financial rope having run out of funds and having only 30% of the support we need to survive. This large donation meant that we could go for probably three more months, a cause for many shouts of praise at our house!
When the funds arrived this morning, I found out that the typo was reversed from what I thought. The $3,000 was wrong and it really was $300. I immediately started thanking God for the $300 which is an amazing blessing. But at the same time, I started to wonder where the other $700 I have to have by tomorrow and the many hundreds more I will soon need will come from. It seems too late because international miracles take time... There went my human thinking again and I successfully turned a blessing into a mental struggle. I spent the next couple of hours battling that defeated feeling. I felt overwhelmed, helpless. I started wondering if maybe God isn’t with us here. If we need to go Stateside and hang up the ministry hat until this terrible economy gets better, if it ever gets better. I started to feel sorry for myself and started counting the number of letters, E-mails and messages I have sent to friends and people close to us asking for help that have not been answered. Not even a “no” or an “I’m sorry but we just don’t have it Pst Steve...” Ignored. Helpless. Overwhelmed.
I started crying in the car during the commute on the way to school with Ethan sitting beside me asking me, “Daddy, what’s wrong?!? Did someone hurt you? Tell me who it is and I’ll beat them up!” He is in that phase right now and it actually made me feel better.
But it’s not about feelings is it... I wrote this post and now I have read it for myself. I needed this! I hope you get something out of it too, but even if nobody ever reads it... it has already done me a world of good! I have been confessing and proclaiming these scriptures and I have been overwhelming my emotions and the devil himself! Then I received another green shoot in my wilderness. An SMS (text message) arrived at just the right time. Someone who I haven’t heard from in a long time said that even though he is going through a difficult time right now and just had his first baby, that God has told him to support our ministry $100 a month! My God! I needed that encouragement at just that moment! My little tears of depression turned into huge tears of joy and gratitude!! With that, we reached 40% of the support we need. Only 60% to go!
Just a few hours ago, the 70% seemed impossible but now 60% seems so within reach! What a difference FAITH makes!
I still need that miracle, but I know that it is en route and that though God seldom is early, He is never late! His timing and his method of distribution is perfect! I’m so encouraged right now that I want to run around the block several times and I probably will just as soon as I finish writing!
For those of you who have prayed for us, who are partnered with us and for those who have communicated, even saying “no” or “not at this time,” I want to say thank you so so much! You are awesome! For those of you have happened upon this post, please consider becoming a part of a mutual miracle and supporting our ministry. We need some pretty fast help. Thank you for your kind consideration my friend.
For more information about our ministry and the breakdown of our financial needs, please visit www.pastorstevemckinney.com . Details on how to send a donation are also listed at the top right hand side of this blog.
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