~The Purpose of Creation - by Donald H. O' Keefe

*NOTE!  The following was our first Blog post.  Due to the Blog being new not many people read this article.  It was written by our Western District Foreign Mission's Director, Bro. Donald Hugh O' Keefe, Pastor of Bay Point UPC and I felt the need to republish it for all to read and enjoy.

Jerry E. Powell


THE PURPOSE OF CREATION

Why did God make the heavens and the earth, and all the plants and creatures, and mankind? Creation was not an experiment or a frivolous game. He had a clear cut, definite purpose in mind. God had a plan.

Creation, as we know it, was the stage where his ultimate purpose, i.e., his plan would be acted out and fulfilled.

Before there were oceans or before there was a sun , moon, or stars; before there were birds, fish, or animals; and especially before there was Adam and Eve; before any of these things, there was the plan of God. Yes, before there was an Adam and Eve that could fall into sin, there was, already in the plan of God a redeemer to save man from the sin that was not yet committed. That is why the Bible refers to “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world”.

~Five Absolutes of Leadership - by Jack Cunningham

by Jack Cunningham

Recently I read an article by John Maxwell in which he listed the following absolutes of leadership. I thought this was worth repeating here. Think about it.

     1.  I cannot lead people beyond their

          level of trust.

     2.  I cannot lead people longer than

          they are willing to follow.

     3.  I cannot lead people further than

          they are willing to go.

     4.  I cannot lead people faster than they are willing to change.

     5.  I cannot lead people higher than they want to climb.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "In order to be a leader a man must have followers. And to have followers, a man must have their confidence. Hence, the supreme quality for a leader is unquestionable integrity. Without integrity, no real success is possible."

Billy Cole said, "The most effective church builders in North America are those who have taken the time to learn what makes North American's tick." An effective leaders has a world-view, or an understanding of the world, and yet is not personally worldly.

I think it is safe to conclude - if we are to be effective leaders we must understand the people we are leading.

(Jack Cunningham is the Director of Global Impact for the United Pentecostal Church International. He also serves as the District Superintendent of the Virginia District and is pastor of Bible World Church in Chesapeake, Virginia.)

~The World's Greatest Revival - by David K. Bernard

Our greatest revival is not behind us; our world's greatest revival is in front of us. It's in the twenty-first century. God is giving it to us now and we are stepping into it right now.

In the parable of the Great Supper (Luke 14), the invited and qualified guests declined the invitation. They were preoccupied with life and the cares of this world. The parable takes an unexpected turn: the master invited guests and for some reason they did not want to cooperate. "So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, "Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind." (Luke 14:21)

The world's greatest revival is sitting in front of us. "And yet there is room." (Luke 14:22) The endtime revival is greater than we think.

Sometimes we think our opportunity is limited. Sometimes we think our church is saturated. Sometimes we think our community is burned up and will not hear anymore, but yet there is room! There is still room for a greater revival than we thought. We need to expand our thinking. We need to realize the best is yet to come. There is still room for revival.

It is time to send out laborers. If we want to see the world's greatest revival, we must think outside the box. Go in the streets, go out in the lanes, and go to the poor and the disabled.

If we want to see the world's greatest revival, we have to stop thinking in our traditional little terms of who is ready to receive the gospel. Find the poor, find the disabled. Go out to the street and lanes. Go out into the highways.

Somehow we need to get out in the public and in the hedges. Who are you going to find in the hedges? No telling who you are going to find. But that is where the world's greatest revival comes from. We have got to think more creatively and more effectively.

How are we going to reach the minorities? How can we reach the poor? How can we reach the disabled that cannot come under ordinary circumstances? How can we go in the highways and in the public? How can we go to the hedges, where nobody thinks to go?

Where in the city is no one going? Where in the city have you never gone before? What populations are untouched or under reached?

If you want the world's greatest revival, it cannot be business as usual. We have got to think outside the box. I am not talking about changing our message. I am not talking about changing our separated lifestyle. And with all due respect, this is sometimes where charismatic or emerging churches have missed the boat because they think if you change the message, that is what will bring the world's greatest revival. That's not what I'm talking about. We are talking about changing our thinking. Innovative methods, greater vision for souls, bigger than we thought, wider than we thought.

I want to bring them to the Apostolic doctrine, the Apostolic message, lifestyle, worship, gifts of the Spirit, and way of life. That is what I'm trying to convert people to.


(David K. Bernard is the General Superintendent of the United Pentecostal Church Ineternational.)
Reprinted from the Superintendent's Communique

~Gratitude by Mark Alphin, missionary to Finland

Note!  I asked Bro. Alphin to write an article for the Blog and he sent the following.  It it much appreciated!

Gratitude – The state of being grateful

When I sat down to write this article, the word “grateful” kept going through my mind. I turned to the dictionary to confirm my understanding of the word and found that “gratitude” is “the state of being grateful.” This bland definition caused me to want to go deeper, as words are sometimes used other than intended, definitions change, and a word’s origin gets lost in the process. My first discovery was not unexpected, as this word is derived from the Latin “gratus” or grateful – appreciation for benefits received. But the next discovery caught me off guard, as “gratus” also gave rise to the development of the word “grace!”

Belize Prayer Partner Update - 3rd Quarter 2010

Dear Prayer Partners,

Well, I'm back again with another update. I did miss the update last quarter, and I apologize. At the time I was in Canada and didn't have a lot of access to the Internet.

I do have a tremendous praise report for you, though. I had asked you to pray as I headed north during the winter months. I was quite worried about the possibility of having to drive in snow. You prayed and the Lord answered your prayers. During the entire time I was in the north, I did not even see snow anywhere, much less have to drive in it! Everywhere I went, people were telling me how unusual the weather was. I was happy to inform them that I had faithful Prayer Partners were praying and this was just an answer to prayer! Thank you for praying!!!

Impact ASIA June 2010

Yesterday, I had the privilege of sitting in a meeting room in the presence of two great men of God. As I listened intently to their dream, their passion and their plan my heart was overcome with a kaleidoscope of emotions: Passion?; Burden?; An overwhelming sense of helplessness? In spite of these emotions I also experienced an eclipsing sense of excitement as the vision was articulated with such clarity and Godly courage.

 This was not the first time I had felt the pulse of my heart increase and the electric surge of faith overwhelm me. I have been in these power-packed and faith infused planning meetings before. I have heard these men many times as they shared their purpose; As they strategized and planned; As they became overcome with the burden of the task; As their eyes filled with tears; As their voices choked with emotion; As their passion could only be verbalized through a prayer of the Spirit. But yesterday, it became clear that the pieces of the planning puzzle were coming together like never before.

IMPACT ASIA: What a Challenge! What a Vision! What a Mandate!