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.
Showing posts with label Light of Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Light of Christ. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Friday, November 20, 2015
Monday, November 9, 2015
Monday, November 2, 2015
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Why Do Christians Fail To Live A Powerful Missional Life?
Here is a Biblical reason why many Christians don't live powerful missional lives. Watch it and evaluate yourself.
Check Out
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
A MISSIONAL ACTIVITY FOR HALLOWEEN
Halloween provides a great opportunity for shining the Light of Christ and living out a missional life! With a little thought and planning you can impact the lives of hundreds with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Ordinary Christians from every walk of life can leverage Halloween to share Jesus with neighbors, friends and co-workers.
Take a few moments and watch this video for one idea of how you can shine the Light of Christ during this Halloween season.
Take a few moments and watch this video for one idea of how you can shine the Light of Christ during this Halloween season.
LEARN HOW TO TRANSITION ANY CONVERSATION INTO A CONVERSATION ABOUT JESUS!
Monday, June 30, 2014
Amazon Reviews On: THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missioinal Living
This Little Light Of Mine: A Journey Into Missional Living is one of the newest and most powerful books on missional living! This simple to read book will inspire and lead the reader to create their own personal strategy for shining the Light of Christ into their part of this dark world.
Read what others are saying, through Amazon Review, about THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE! These reviews are from ordinary christians, not professional clergy, who share their real impressions after reading the book.
"I just finished reading "This Little Light of Mine" by Jay Moore. I enjoyed this well written book that will be a wonderful instructional tool for the everyday believer on how to shine the light of Jesus with their circle of friends and family. He has taken a simple and engaging story about two little lights who found the courage to leave their comfort zone and go out into the dark world to share their light. Then he has offered some well thought out plans on how we as believers can do the same. I would recommend this book for those who want to do this this but just aren't sure how." Nancy Miller http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"A few weeks ago, I pulled a man from jumping off a 600 foot high bridge; he wanted to die. I may have bought him a few more days to live, but what is life in comparison to the destiny of his eternal soul? As he ranted and raved, crying out that no-one cared about him, I assured him I did care. What I didn’t do in this moment of crisis was to lead him into a relationship with Christ. What I didn’t do was provide the message to save his soul instead of just his body. This event settled heavily on my heart over the next weeks as I realized that all my years of church going didn’t prepare me for this moment. I determined I would never miss another divine appointment to share Jesus with those I come across every day. Jay’s book was a timely answer to this desire and there is not enough room to describe the impact it has had on my life. It is exactly the tool I needed. This Little Light of Mine provides the missing link between Christianity and the real world, and in applying its message, I now live prepared to share Christ with others. Jay’s writings reveal a pastor’s heart to teach the truth, convert hearts, and disciple the remnant of hurting men and women living outside the sanctity of a church building. The book is a long overdue guide for those who want to take their faith out of the buildings and into natural flow of life. Randy Shepherd http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"Loved this book it's simple basic principles explained so you know what God wants from you. The mirror unveiled so to speak. Jay lets you see how the love God has given to each of us is to be shared daily as we go out and do our normal activities how Gods plan fits into the life we live. Thanks Jay it inspired and motivated me to open my eyes at those who around me and be aware of what they need to be able to see God's love for them." Terri Barry http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"This is a book that needs to be shared by the pastors and leaders of all churches with their congregations. This Little Light of Mine clearly defines the purpose of our lives, to tell others the Good News! Pastor Jay paints an accurate picture of the state of the world as well as the mind set of the North American Church and then clearly and simply outlines a strategy to bring about light into darkness and revival among the followers! This movement will be brought forward not by the trained and ordained but by the everyday ordinary believer that has a heart for the lost and feels the burden of the Great Commission. With this book, those everyday ordinary believers will be equipped and ready to be unleashed to go out and make disciples of all the nations!" Debbie Harvey http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"This little book is practical, easy to read and understand, and applicable in it's approach for today's believer. It gives clear and plain direction to keep one's life in Christ alive and flourishing, and to share with others. I recommend this book to anyone new to the faith or older in faith to inspire anyone and everyone to move forward with the gospel of Christ." Mary Moore http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"Straight-forward street talk! The heart of this book is a compelling call for Christ followers to get back to the basics in daily demonstrations of God's love. It's a call to merge your faith with your daily living, no matter where you are. The author emphasizes the significance of every believer's unique mission field outside of the church. Perhaps the best part is that Jay doesn't leave the reader dangling after stirring their hearts. Instead, he provides practical tools for carrying out the call: Living a Christ centered life that remains in view of others and touches the people we encounter every single day. You won't put this book down without having experienced an inspirational perspective change." Barbette Shepherd http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"Jay Moore has written a book addressing the common problem in churches today of people going to church but never going out into the Mission Field of their own lives. He addresses the problem of never leaving your comfort zone of the pew and being a light to the world around you especially in our nation today.I felt it was well written for the common Christian man and women, with practical steps to gain comfort in sharing your faith through your own experiences in your walk with Christ. I found myself these last two weeks praying that God would make me bold and shine the light that he has put in me to the people I meet every day. Before I read the book I had a couple of experiences where I was able to share a small version of my testimony with two people in distress and how God worked in my life. I've asked that they keep the door open for me to stay in touch. Highly recommend this book." Johnnie Moore Robinson http://goo.gl/NVps7m
"Brother Jay Moore has authored this challenging, insightful and illustrative tool that can be used by Christian individuals and church leaders to study and train other congregational members, why and how to bring light and life to people who are living in the darkness of unbelief. This is a book that is Kingdom minded. The first message is a story that illustrates a problem that has been plaguing the Church for years. In many cases some church attendees seem to come to church, but they walk out the doors and don't pass the message on to those outside who haven't heard it. In some cases many people who come to church do everything they can to make themselves look good to the other members of the church, instead of glorifying God, Who blessed them with this gift. The book also gives instruction on how to gain a missional mindset and how to effectively bring that mindset to the mission fields. The step-by-step instructions are clear to understand and easy to implement. I highly recommend every Christian to read this book and serve to the glory of the King and His Kingdom." Ric Worshill http://goo.gl/NVps7m
Again, this book is written for the ordinary Christian who has a sincere desire to share Jesus and shine His Light brightly in this dark world but just don't know where to start! If you have always desired to be a more powerful witness for Christ and a brighter Light shining for Jesus' glory then you need to get and read this book!
You can order your copy today at: http://goo.gl/NVps7m
Sunday, April 13, 2014
WHY DO PEOPLE CONTINUE TO WONDER AROUND IN SPIRITUAL DARKNESS?
The world we live in is a very spiritually dark world. Everyday people are roaming around in this darkness cold, frightened and stumbling around. Many, if not most, of these people don't even realize they exist in darkness! Why? Because they have never experience the Light of Christ and don't know any different!
But for those of us who have come to faith in Christ we have experienced the Light and even more than that Jesus says we are now the Light of the world. People only exist in spiritual darkness because Christians have either not come into their life to shine the Light of Christ or Christians have been hiding their Light and keeping it from those who most desperately need it.
But for those of us who have come to faith in Christ we have experienced the Light and even more than that Jesus says we are now the Light of the world. People only exist in spiritual darkness because Christians have either not come into their life to shine the Light of Christ or Christians have been hiding their Light and keeping it from those who most desperately need it.
But Jesus Said
"YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD!"
Watch This Video Right Now And
Be Encouraged To Shine The Light Of Christ!
Now It's Time For You To Go Shine The
LIGHT OF CHRIST!
Saturday, February 22, 2014
MISSIONAL LIVING IS A 24/7 PROPOSITION: 3 Things To Remember!
When it comes to missional living there's no clock for you to punch out to say you're done for the day! Ordinary Christians who live a life obedient to Christ's mission must be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 52 weeks out of the year. Even when you're on vacation, you're still on mission! That's just the way it is.
So, with that in mind here are 3 things to remember that will help you as you pursue Christ's mission. These 3 suggestions are gleaned from a study from the Gospel of John 4:1-10 as Jesus is going through Samaria and meets the woman at the well. Take a few moments to read the story for yourself out of your own Bible.
1. Learn To Minister Even When You're Tired: The first lesson that we gather from this story is through Christ's own example. When Jesus and his disciples got to the well Jesus is dead-dog tired. He needed to stop, rest and eat. So, Jesus sent the disciples on into town to buy some food while he was going to get some time for himself to rest and relax. But God the Father had other plans for His Son. While Jesus was resting, a woman from the town came out to draw some water. Jesus could have chosen to ignore her and not say anything to the woman. After all he was exhausted and who would have blamed him if he took a few moments to himself and chose to say nothing at all. But that's not the way Jesus worked! For Jesus, being tired or hungry was never an excuse for not engaging a person to see if the Father was at work in their life and drawing them.
There are going to plenty of times when we are tired and maybe even downright exhausted to the point we just don't feel like making another visit or sharing another Gospel presentation. But the example that we have from Jesus is to just suck it up and do it. People are depending on us to bring the Light into their part of this dark world. Once they hear the Good News they'll have an opportunity to believe and place their faith in Christ.
After Jesus had finished his encounter with the woman he no longer felt the weight of being tired or hungry. Instead he declared that he had food that his disciples did not know about (spiritual food). The food that Jesus was talking about was to do the will of His Father. When we join God on His mission, even when we are tired or hungry, the outcome usually is a tremendous sense of satisfaction and contentment that completely outweighs and in many cases eliminates the physical needs that previously haunted us.
2. Learn To Minister To The People Who Are Marginalized: This second lesson can be a very difficult one to learn and even more difficult to put into practice. What do I mean by ministering to people who have been marginalized? Marginalized people are people who are overlooked, outcast, and in most cases discriminated against. They are the people we don't feel comfortable around. In this story the main character, besides Jesus, was the Samaritan woman who came to the well. She was marginalized for three reasons.
First, because she was a Samaritan. The Jews considered Samaritans to be halfbreed dogs. The prejudice was thick between these two groups. It had to be a dire emergency for either party (Jew or Samaritan) to talk to the other, usually only for business purposes and only for a very short period of time. But here was Jesus striking up a conversation with her and asking her for a favor.
Second, because she was a woman. We can get a little glimpse into the life of women back in Bible times by looking at many parts of the Middle East today. Men just did not talk to women, especially in public. It just didn't happen. So, here's Jesus once again breaking the social barriers and engaging, in conversation, with a woman.
Third, because she was a woman of sordid background. She had been married 5 times and the man she was with at that present time was not her husband. She was not a woman who was very well respected in her village because she was considered an adulterer, a sinner and as such no one would want to have any association with her. But Jesus not only talks to her but is willing to do so in public. Jesus knew that if he was to pursue the Father's mission it meant he would have to encounter and embrace many people that most would never consider to be worthy and in many cases considered outcasts. We too, need to look past the conditions of others and see the love that Jesus has for them. We will have to discard our distrust of others who are different so that we will be able to share the love of God to them and lovingly call them to repentance.
3. Learn To Be Aware Of Those Divine Appointments: This passage indicates that Jesus "HAD" to go through Samaria. Why did Jesus have to go that way? Most of the Jews of that time would intentionally go around that area in order to avoid the Samaritans, so why did Jesus have to go that way? Could it have been that one of the reason for "having" to go was because his Father had an appointment set up for him to keep? Could it be that this was the time for an entire village to come to faith in the Son of God? As we go through life on Christ's mission we should expect and look for those Divine Encounters that God has scheduled from His throne of grace.
Looking to see where God is already at work during our daily activities should be as normal to us as breathing; we should do it without even knowing it. There are some things that only God can do and when we see those activities being displayed it should be a clear indicator that God is busy about His work and calling us to join Him in that work. Some of our missional activities are intentional and planned activities where we go out to find where God is at work. We accomplish that by doing things like door to door prayer walking. But then there are other times when God's work finds us as we are busy with the work of this present life.
The question that we need to continually ask ourselves is whether we are willing to deny ourselves, take up our cross and join Christ in His mission on a day to day basis and to join Him in it regardless of how, when, or where the mission opportunity presents itself. Remember you are the Light of the world!
GO SHINE CHRIST'S LIGHT!
Monday, February 17, 2014
HOW THE 10TH VICTIM OF HILLSIDE STRANGLER (LAUREN WAGNER) CHANGED MY SPIRITUAL LIFE!
I don't remember anything that the reporter said because once I heard her name, Laurene Wagner, and saw her picture my mind was immediately transported back to 9 months earlier when I was a Senior in high school and working for Taco Bell. One of my co-workers was Laurene! She pretty, funny and full of life and "yes" I was attracted to her! Once, after getting my courage up, I asked Laurene if she would like to go out on a date sometime. After her asked her that she just look at me with a little grin on her face and said, "Sure, I'd like to go out with you. But on one condition!" "One condition", I said. "And what condition is that?" I asked her. "On the condition that you never talk to me about that Jesus crap!" Laurene had heard that I was Christian, that I went to church and that my father was a pastor and she didn't want to have anything to do with religion. It wasn't what she said that impacted me but it was my response back to her that God has seared into my memory and for which came haunting me 9 months later. For when she said, "Don't ever talk to me about that Jesus crap" I responded back to her with, "I wasn't going to tell you about Him any how!" And I meant those words. Though I was a Christian, at that time in my life I was more concern about my image of being popular than I was about people's salvation.
Then 9 months later those words that I said, words I didn't even remember saying until I saw her picture on the TV, came rushing back to me over and over again and the Holy Spirit convicted my soul unlike I have every experience before or since. After I realized that Lauren had been brutally raped and murdered question started flooding my mind. Question like: Did anyone tell her about Jesus? Did she ever give her heart to Christ? I knew I hadn't and I knew I never intended to! Now God was convicting me by rebuking me by saying, "How dare you withhold the greatest gift ever given when you had a chance to share it!", "How dare you be more concerned with your image of popularity and you are about the eternal soul of another person!" How dare you be disobedient with the most important command I have given my people!" How Dare You!
I became overwhelmed with emotion and just ran out of the apartment without an explanation. My girl friend came after me asking me what was wrong. I sat there with my head in arms and through the tear of shame that flooded my heart shared with her all that was going on with me.
But something good did come out of that night. For it was that night that I made a personal declaration. On that night I declared "Never again would anyone wonder if I was a fully devoted follower of Christ; never again would I withhold the great gift ever given to mankind; Never again would I refuse to shine the Light of Christ to those who were still lost in the darkness. Never Again!
Since that time day I have committed myself to improve and become the best witness for Christ that I could possibly be. Don't misunderstand me, I am not an evangelist but I am a witness for Jesus. If a person is going to get to me, they will have to get to know Jesus. For you cannot know me without knowing about Jesus.
This is why I have started The Ordinary Christian. It is to empower, encourage and equip ordinary christians to live powerful missional lives that shine the Light of Christ brightly in their part of this dark world. That is why I produce a free weekly video devotional called Missional Devotionals to encourage God's people to be intentional about sharing Jesus. You can find out more information about these devotionals at:
Is it embarrassment? Fear? or Discouragement? What then? And what are you going to do about it?
You are the delivery person of the great gift ever given! A gift given by God himself and he want us to share with the world!
Let me encourage you to be intentional about sharing Jesus and making fully devoted followers of Christ. Jesus said, "You Are The Light Of The World". Take that identity seriously and GO SHINE HIS LIGHT!
Thursday, February 6, 2014
NEED ENCOURAGEMENT FOR MISSIONAL LIVING? Then I've Got Good News!
DON'T ALLOW:- FEAR
- DISCOURAGEMENT
- INTIMIDATION
KEEP YOU FROM LIVING A POWERFUL
MISSIONAL LIFE!
As A Follower Of Christ We've Been Called To Shine The Light Of Christ Into Our Part Of This Dark World By Doing Good Deeds and Telling The Good News!
BUT IN ORDER TO DO IT EFFECTIVELY
WE NEED TO RECEIVE REGULAR ENCOURAGEMENT!
Now you can receive that encouragement by subscribing to MISSIONAL DEVOTIONALS! Missional Devotionals are weekly devotionals in a video format that are emailed out to empower, encourage and equip Ordinary Christians to live powerful missional lives where the Light of Christ shines through them and into their part of this dark world. They are 4 to 6 minutes in length and are designed to help people to focus their week to join Christ on His mission.
Take A Few Minutes To Watch This Video To See Why I'm So Passionate About Encouraging Christians To Be On Mission With Christ:
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
How Well Do You Display The Light of Christ: Missional Devotional
DON'T MISS A SINGLE MISSIONAL DEVOTIONAL
SIGNUP FOR YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION NOW!
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Pastor Ron Barker's Amazon Book Review Of: THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missional Living
He has Biblical background and has applied it very well in my opinion. The work of taking the Gospel to a lost and dying world has always rested in the 'everyman'.
Anyone who will take the time to read this book and apply the timeless principles will find themselves following the way of the Master. Well done Jay!"
Pastor Ron Barker
THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE was written to provide practical help for those Christians who desperately want to live an effective missional life that shine brightly the Light of Christ through them and into their part of this dark world but just don't know where to start!
Through this book you will receive inspiration and encouragement as you read a modern day parable of two brave little light that left the safety and comfort of their big and bright house to shine their light in the dark world and help those unlit wicks that were out there. You will receive Biblical insight as you learn 5 Biblical principles necessary for missional living; you will learn about 3 essential skills necessary for living a missional life and how to make them as natural to you as breathing is. And finally, you will be walked through a simple process for designing your own personalized strategy for missional living.
THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missional Living is available at Amazon.com in both paperback and kindle formats.
THIS IS A MUST READ FOR ALL CHRISTIANS WHO DESIRE TO LIVE AN AUTHENTIC MISSIONAL LIFE WHERE THE LIGHT OF CHRIST SHINES BRIGHTLY!
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Carol Skaggs Amazon Book Review of: THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missional Living
We are all so comfortable shining our light within our churches, but when it comes to sharing with the community at large, or even within our own sphere of influence we are falling down on the job.
Jay lays out a step by step plan to begin living a missional life. Starting with our own testimonies, giving God the glory as we seek ways to bless other people's lives. This opens up doors to sharing the Good News of Christ and ultimately helping someone to consider Christ.
I recommend this book to everyone, but especially Christians!"
Carol Skaggs
THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE was written to provide practical help for those Christians who desperately want to live an effective missional life that shine brightly the Light of Christ through them and into their part of this dark world but just don't know where to start!
Through this book you will receive inspiration and encouragement as you read a modern day parable of two brave little light that left the safety and comfort of their big and bright house to shine their light in the dark world and help those unlit wicks that were out there. You will receive Biblical insight as you learn 5 Biblical principles necessary for missional living; you will learn about 3 essential skills necessary for living a missional life and how to make them as natural to you as breathing is. And finally, you will be walked through a simple process for designing your own personalized strategy for missional living.
THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missional Living is available at Amazon.com in both paperback and kindle formats.
THIS IS A MUST READ FOR ALL CHRISTIANS WHO DESIRE TO LIVE AN AUTHENTIC MISSIONAL LIFE WHERE THE LIGHT OF CHRIST SHINES BRIGHTLY!
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