"Christianity is the divine power of Jesus Christ
by the Holy Spirit, filling a man's soul and
body, flashing through his nature like a holy
flame, accomplishing the will of God" John G.
Lakes
Recently
we were in a Middle Eastern nation ministering
to a group of Christian workers who were grappling
with many serious, sometimes life and death matters.
Their lives illustrate some of the greatest
complexities and challenges in taking Christ to
the nations. I (Norm) wish every person preparing
for missions could meet and hear from them. During
our fellowship times with them, I asked this question,
"What is the most important thing needed in
preparation for what you are doing?"
Many of them responded saying, "Learn how to
deal with spiritual strongholds." Personal
spiritual strongholds are one of the main topics
we presented to them. It has been a core in the
training we provide.
In
preparation for serving the Lord overseas, what
is the most important thing we must know and experience?
How can we prevent the high dropout rate among
many who seek to serve the Lord? Some years ago
we had two opportunities to host a well-known
author of one of the most highly esteemed books
on cross-cultural communication. When we hosted
him, he was well into his seventies or even eighties.
During a conversation, I asked him what he felt
was the most important knowledge needed to prepare
for missions. His answer astounded me. He referred
to the children of Israel and their departure
from Egypt. They were instructed to ask their
Egyptian neighbors for gold, and their neighbors
gladly complied. But the question arises, "What
good is gold in a desert?" The gold of Egypt
is not necessarily bad though it does represent
worldly power. The world trusts in the power of
wealth. What could gold buy in the desert? In
the end, they used this power to make an idol
that they worshipped in place of the Lord.
What
can be compared to Egypt's gold?
- Knowledge
- Knowledge is good, but knowledge alone does
not accomplish the work. Because we live in
a time where there is such an abundance of knowledge
from so many sources, nearly all the world has
the ability to know. If power came through knowledge,
we would already be spiritual giants. We are
trying to impart knowledge in this book, so
it is good. The Scriptures talk about seeking
knowledge, but knowledge requires response and
application. I suggest that many of us have
far more knowledge than we have been able to
apply. In India I gained the title "The Practical
Preacher" because all of my teaching was applicable.
If you can't use it, you will lose it like the
manna in the desert.
"Knowledge
puffs up, but love builds up." (I Corinthians
8:1)
-
Technology - An interesting fact coming out
of the war in Iraq is that with all the highly
sophisticated technology of the allied force,
they have not been able to defeat the simple
plots of the insurgents. A radical dedication
and covert activity has subverted the high-tech
weapons of the west. In our work, e-mail communication
is important but not essential. Power point
illustration help, but it is the Holy Spirit
who speaks. I am writing to you with the help
of technology, but I know that the value of
these words is not in your receiving it but
in the Holy Spirit revealing it.
"Some
trust in chariots, and some in horses, but
we trust in the name of the Lord our God."
(Psalm 20:7)
- Strategic
gatherings - Much has been done to bring people
together to plan. I have been to many "networking"
meetings that amounted to little. That doesn't
mean they are unnecessary. A book published
in the 80's talked about the steps of highly
effective people. The principles were good,
and many sounded like they were Biblically based.
Yet if dependence is not put on the Lord and
seeking His face and His strategy, much time
can be wasted. The late Leonard Ravenhill wrote
that in the early church, men met in the upper
room to pray; now men meet in the conference
room to pay. The subtle reasoning is that if
we have strategy and wealth, we can do the work.
"In
his heart a man plans his course, but the
Lord determines his steps." (Proverbs 16:9)
-
Finances - Nearly every work that we know struggles
to be financially supported. During twenty-five
years of missions work, there have been things
we desired, but our effectiveness was never
dependent on how much we had. In India we know
of Christ's servants who literally have only
the clothing they wear and a Bible, but who
are much more effective than many well resourced
Christians. In the Elijah Company, we have maintained
a faith lifestyle and though we are not rich
by worldly standards, we have had all that we
need. Money is a necessity in this world but
not what we depend on.
"So
he said to me, 'This is the word of the Lord
to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power,
but by my Spirit,' says the Lord Almighty.'"
(Zechariah 4:6)
Are
these things wrong? No, but what is wrong
is the use of them without the power that God
supplies. What was the real resource that God
gave Israel when they came out of Egypt? I believe
it is found in Exodus
33-34. Moses found favor in God's sight, received
a revelation of God and a promise of His presence.
What can we do to prioritize knowing God and His
presence and finding His favor?
Ways
to Prioritize Knowing God's Presence and Power
-
Live in love and unity - We are not lone-rangers
but are connected to the entire body. Where
love and unity are being practiced, there will
also be power. Strife puts out the Spirit's
power. The founder of McDonald's restaurants
is quoted as saying, "None of us is as good
as all of us." Without unity, the Lord's presence
is diminished. The Lord dwells in the midst
of loving fellowship.
"Who
is wise and understanding among you? Let him
show it by his good life, by deeds done in
the humility that comes from wisdom. But if
you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition
in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny
the truth. Such 'wisdom' does not come down
from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of
the devil. For where you have envy and selfish
ambition, there you find disorder and every
evil practice. But the wisdom that is from
heaven is first of all pure, then peace loving,
considerate, submissive, full of mercy and
good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers
who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness."
(James 3:13-18)
- Hunger
for God's manifest presence - Moses said,
"If you don't go with us, don't send us."
This is nurtured through prayer and fasting.
I asked a missionary working in a difficult
place if there are many other workers who spend
an hour a day in prayer. His response was that
he does not know of any, not even himself. We
need time to be still in His presence as the
Word says in Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know
that I am God." And as the small monk, Brother
Lawrence wrote, "We must practice the presence
of God". He is with us, but are we continually
aware of it? Sign up for Intercessors Arise
to learn more about prayer and practicing God's
presence by sending a blank e-mail to intercessorsarise-international-subscribe@strategicnetwork.org
Experience
the fullness of the Holy Spirit - Jesus said that
He would not leave His followers as orphans but
would send the Helper, the Holy Spirit. John
14:17-18, 26. Historically, there have been
divisive views about the work of the Holy Spirit
in the Church. These views have resulted in grievous
divisions and lack of power and witness. What
is the proper way to think of the Holy Spirit?
In the late eighties, I was asked to do a teaching
on the person and work of the Holy Spirit. I was
impressed with the idea that the Father was in
Heaven, the Son was seated at His right hand and
that God the Holy Spirit was resident in us, the
Church. Because of this I sought to know the Holy
Spirit better. As a result my ministry began to
have a more powerful outcome.
The
most important things is to know the Lord and
walk in His presence. Technology, organizing,
networking, finances are all good tools but we
need to seek God first and the tools later. The
motto of my alma mater is "To know Him and
to make Him know." Recently in talking with
a long-term worker from the Middle East, I asked
him this question, "How much knowledge does
a person need to prepare for overseas work?"
His response to the question about knowledge to
prepare was, "You don't have to be a rocket
scientist to be a worker for the Lord. The
important thing is to know the Lord."
"It
must be perfectly obvious to anyone that what
the whole church needs from top to bottom is
a deeper conversion, a profounder experience
of the power of the Holy Spirit. Awakenings
in history have never come from regular ecclesiastics
getting together to 'do something'. It has come
from inspired nobodies whom the church first
ignored, then condemned, then (if they got powerful)
took over and finally domesticated. Let us look
to see where the Holy Spirit is at work now.
Maybe we can learn something" Samuel Shoemaker
For
additional training in the presence of God, read
the book called Go Forth in Power (Book
2) by Norman and Debbie Przybylski
Training
in World Missions
To
learn more about the Elijah Company please read:
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