Phil's Evangelism Testimony

aha, i post on behalf of my dear beloved brother Phil, who went out valiantly last friday and returned with quite a testimony on his experience with evangelism. i'll keep my words short, and there you go Phil. do the talking. yes kenneth also asked me to post on the past - one year back, and you can find the link here, to take a whiff at the past and how it all began. but enough of that. on to phil (:

I don’t believe that I have been called into the ministry of evangelism; I’m pretty sure that it’s one of those spiritual gifts that I haven’t been blessed with (probably because opening my mouth to talk to strangers is something I’d naturally shy away from).

It should then come as no surprise that my blood nearly turned cold when seeing my name come up first upon the drawing of lots (out of the group of seven). Urim and Thummim it was not (nice pray over the paper and toss into the air, really), but I had to trust that it was indeed God’s will for me to go out and learn something from it. It didn’t quite help that I didn’t have any past evangelism experience to speak of – praying for students having their exams is one thing; having to share the gospel with a complete stranger is another.

And so it was with more than a slight bit of uncertainty that I went out, thankfully with a partner (Christabel) who was willing and able to initiate our conversations.

I must also admit that I did indeed learn much from that short half an hour – both how to handle the initial stage, when the subject still gives you an ^o) and peers at you goggle-eyed in suspicion, and also how to take the conversation from there. Once the hardest part is over, things did seem to proceed a little more smoothly.

And then, I was also reminded that there exist people who acknowledge both their own sinfulness and God’s holiness and still refuse to come to Christ; that there are people who have been to church for years and yet remain unsaved; that there are people who have been in ACS for years and have undoubtedly heard the gospel message being preached and presented many times over, and yet still remain blinded (or worse still, hardened) to their own need for salvation; that indeed, the most sobering reality in the world today is that people are dying and going to hell today. That is the terrifying but sad truth about the situation, both in ACS and in everywhere else around the world.

But it is also a truth which should at the very least shake us into living a life which shows that we truly believe what we claim to believe. And it is a powerful and timely reminder of the work we have been called to here in ACS.

in His service,
Phil

God's love

He first loved us...
while we were yet sinners(Romans 5:8)
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Jesus said: "I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd" (John 10:16)
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Even when go astray, He still wants us to come back to Him
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...I will not forget you,
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands....
(Isaiah 49:15-16)
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the parable of the prodigal son , the Father does not forget us(Luke 15)
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We love because He first loved us.(1 John 4:19)
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Yet there are so many out there who haven't experienced His love... are we going to share God's gift of love to them?
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a parable(taken from church today)
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picture this... a terrible famine broke out in part of Africa, an entire village starving.
then the UN sends food to the village and entrusts it to the village chief . However to the horror of the starving people, the chief stockpiles the food in a warehouse and refuses to give the food to the people unless they paid...leaving them to die one by one, while the chief and his family live in luxury. Finally, after a few months, the entire village except the chief and his family has died of starvation. The UN goes over to check to find a warehouse of rotting food and the chief still living in luxury. And the chief gets charged in court...
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are we like the chief , keeping God's gift of Love to ourselves and not sharing it with others, until all we left is a rotting self? Freely we have received so freely we should give(Matthew 10:8).
How are we going to answer to God for not telling other people about Christ?
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or picture the escalator analogy , imagine your friends crying out to you asking you why you never told them about Christ?
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just something to think about.
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In His Love,
Emil

underground operation

(before this starts to sound like some jihad terrorist organization rally message, let us clarify that it is not)

as Christians we live in an upside down kingdom, ruled by the greatest and only King of the universe, but nevertheless it is a kingdom ruled in love, and ruled by morals unheard of to the world: while one takes revenge in the world, another turns the other cheek in the upside down kingdom; while one strives to store up riches, the other forsakes all for the call;

i besiege all belonging to this upside down kingdom today - to remember your citizenship!

start to hold the fort. we're in an underground operation here. persecuted but not completely struck down; hard-pressed on all sides but not giving in; perhaps some of us have not realized the extent of the battle - that ongoing war between the principalities of light and darkness, the fighting going on on the spiritual battlefield - but it is happening, even as we walk to school, partake of the fellowship during recess - it is happening.

and get this. it appears at times, that we are fighting a losing battle. in the light of the happenings of this world, it seems that us, underground operations, will never see the light of day. Yet there is one, one comforting word, that we must all remember. the great commander, whilst He was here beside us said those few words:

"But take heart, for I have already overcome the world!"

and here we are, just occupying the land for this little moment, trying at best to bring others to follow us on the cause, to convince others of the truth of the message, to build up the Lord's army. Have we forgotten the sacrifice He made for us - that life which he gave for us to guarantee us the victory? that moment, when he passed on, and when He returned with the promise, was the moment that we knew, that the battle was already won (:

still. this is not a reason to rest on our laurels. we must continue to be filled with passion for the cause, and be creative in the methods of defence, offence; infiltration of enemy ground - for all those he has taken hostage, we need to steal them back from under His nose.

first. be convicted of the cause.
second. direct the conviction in creative means
third. pray. and rely on the strength of our Grand Commander.

yes pray. because in our base. there are a group of prayer warriors, who fight not physically but call upon the name of our Grand Commander, to cry out to Him for grace and mercy to aid us in the cause. and the best part - He is always listening, always ready to help - and His angels guard us, His army stands before us. and we have Nothing To Fear. absolutely.

so why wait. let's go out. and do this for His glory.

that the Lord may receive the reward for His grand sacrifice on the cross!!

Flame On!

in love and humility
God be glorified
tim