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This blog is about encouraging, empowering and equipping Ordinary Christians live an intentionally missional life that shine the Light of Christ brightly back into this dark world. We will provide training on on developing the basic skills necessary for living a life of a missionary; Biblical insights that will empower Ordinary Christians to share their faith; and inspirational stories of other Ordinary Christians who are living a life on mission with Christ.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
HAVE YOU DISPLAYED THE LIGHT OF CHRIST TO SHINE BRIGHTLY?
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
MISSIONAL DEVOTIONAL: You Are The Light Of The World
"YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF
THE WORLD!"
Today be empowered and go live out the identity that Christ has declared you to be!
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Tuesday, September 10, 2013
A ROADBLOCK TO MISSIONAL LIVING: A Lack Of Sincere Love For The Lost!
Now, that’s simply amazing when you think about
it. Let me try to put in a context
that will help us wrap our minds around this amazing kind of love. Imagine for a moment that you have a
beautiful child that means the world to you. You love him, care for him and this child brings you such
tremendous joy that you would do anything for him. But now imagine a neighborhood filled with drunken bums that
have made a shamble of their lives through drug, alcohol and addiction. God’s love that sent Jesus to die on
the cross for us who are sinners would be like you sending that beautiful child
to die on behalf of those drunken bums.
That’s hard to imagine isn’t it!
Who could actually do that?
Well, God did and there’s only one reason why He did, and that because
of His amazing love for us. We don’t deserve His love and there’s nothing about
us that would compel Him to love us but it’s because it’s in God’s nature to
love! That’s why Jesus went to the
cross for us.
GOD LOVES US!
The roadblock that keeps us from joining Christ
on this mission is because we don’t love others like that. Oh, we might love our family like that to
some degree or we might love one of our friends like that but what about your
neighbor next door that you’ve hardly met? Do we love our co-workers enough to sacrifice for them so
they might experience God’s forgiveness of sin?
Some might be willing to share with others they
don’t know if it doesn’t cost them too much or if it’s not to inconvenient. But are willing to offer up sacrificial
and unconditional love for them so they might hear the Good News of Christ? Do we really have that kind of love or
do we fall short in this area of missional living?
But it is the unconditional and sacrificial
love that Christ share with us that He now commands us to share with
others! Listen to the words of
Jesus concerning His expectation for how we are to love the people.
“A new command I
give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one
another. By this everyone will know that you are my
disciples, if you love one another.”
John 13:34-35 (NIV)
Did you notice
that Jesus said that He was giving us a NEW COMMAND? That means that what He is telling us is not an option for
us on whether we will obey or not.
When Jesus says, that this is a command, HE EXPECTS THE COMMAND TO BE
OBEYED. And what exactly is that
command?
To love others like he has love us!
We are not to
love others any oh way! Jesus has
provided for us, by his own life, a perfect example of how He wants us to love
others. We are to love
others like He loved us!
And Jesus’ way
of loving is both:
UNCONDITIONAL & SACRIFICIAL!
Our love for the
people of this world should never have an “IF” in it. We should never say to a person, “I’ll love you (IF) you do
this for me or (IF) you do that for me.”
We are to love the people of this world regardless if they ever love us
back and regardless if they ever do anything for us.
Not only should
our love for the world be unconditional but it also needs to be
sacrificial. It will COST you to
love people like Christ loves! And
many times that cost is extensive!
It can cost you your time, money, and emotions! I believe that is one of the biggest
reasons why Jesus said that part of the conditions to FOLLOWING Him included
DENYING YOURSELF. You really can’t
love like Christ, sacrificially, if you are always trying to please your own
self. Sacrificial love many times
will require the giver to suffer on behalf of the recipient. The list can go on and on how loving
others the way Christ loves can cost us.
So, how does a
Follower of Christ get to the point where they can love the lost like Christ
loved us? I think it starts with
truly believing that the people of the world if they were to die without Christ
will be experience God’s wrath and punishment on Judgment Day! This isn’t just a figure of speech that
the Bible uses but this is truly an upcoming world event that is going to
happen! Christ is going to return
and He is going to bring with Him the wrath and Judgment of God the Father with
Him. For those who don’t know Him,
who have not repented from their sinful lifestyle and has not sincerely
confessed Jesus as Lord will experience that wrath by spending an eternity in
hell! DO WE REALLY BELIEVE THAT? Do we understand that we too were once
headed for that same place? And do
we believe that we might be the only opportunity that some people have to hear
and receive the wonderful gift of God’s love and experience His
forgiveness?
For a Follower
of Christ there is no greater purpose in this life than, out of gratitude to
God and love for our fellow man, than to deny ourselves, take up our cross
daily and follow Christ in order to save as many as possible and experience God’s
forgiveness.
Here's a website to help empower you, encourage you and equip you for living an intentional missional life: THE ORDINARY CHRISTIAN!
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
TAKE MY HAND AND WALK WITH ME
Jesus said:
Come unto me
and I will set you free
Take my hand
and walk with me
and I will set you free!
He heals the sick,
makes the blind to see
rebukes the Devil
and makes the demons flee!
And He's still the only God for me
Listen brother
to what I say
For He's the Way.
Your life can change
in just one instant.
Is this your day
He heals the sick,
makes the blind to see
rebukes the Devil
and makes the demons flee!
And He's still
the only God for me.
(Vick West, Jay Moore, Linda Moore)
#MissionalLiving for Ordinary Christians is all about taking Christ's hand and walking with Him. As we do we will see and experience some pretty amazing things!
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
JESUS TEACH ME TO LOVE LIKE YOU
Jesus teach me how to love like you!
Jesus teach me how to love like you!
The Bible says that there's no greater love
Than the one who lays down his life.
He lays down his life, so the one he loves
Can continue to live their life!
God sent His Son to die on the cross
He died to set us free!
He freed us from sin and cleansed us within.
He died for you and me.
There's no great power than the power of love.
The love that will set you free!
It's the power of love, that comes from above.
His love for you and me!
Jesus teach me how to love like you!
Jesus teach me how to love like you!
Monday, September 2, 2013
MISSIONAL DEVOTIONAL: Missional Living Is More Of A Lifestyle
"MissionalLiving is more of a lifestyle than it is an activity"
Today, think about how you, an #ordinarychristian, can make missional living part of your lifestyle! And remember GO SHINE THE LIGHT OF CHRIST!
A ROADBLOCK TO #MISSIONALLIVING: Setting Your Mind On The Things Of Men & Not On The Things Of God
“Jesus turned around and looked at his disciples, then reprimanded Peter. ‘ Get away from me, Satan!’ he said. ‘You are seeing things merely from a human point of view,not from God’s.” Mark 8:33 (NLT)
God’s mission and plan was to take Jesus to the cross but Peter’s plan was to keep Christ safe and from harm. How often do our thoughts, plans, ideas or just personal opinions are in direct opposition from that of God’s and His will? It’s not because we are deliberately trying to rebel against God but yet as we see with Peter even our best intentions can be totally opposite of what God is doing!
Listen to what the Bible says,
“There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12 NAS)
Not everything that we think is “right” is actually “right” with God and because of that we need to seriously seek God for Him to reveal to us what is right and what he is doing! Wouldn’t it be horrible to be fervently fighting for a particular position only to find out that you were fighting against God?
3 Ways You Could Be Fighting Against God And What He’s Doing:
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