Here's a Shout Out!

Great News! Bro. Harvey Whalen just passed all the driving requirements for driving our Buses! The transportation ministry team is growing! Yet not only is the team growing, He's growing and becoming a Healthy Disciple! Why is he growing? He's active in these four things: Worship (comes to services)/Connect (in a small group Bible study)/Serving (helping with buses)/Reaching (goes on Sat AM Outreach)! When you do these things you'll be a healthy disciple! When you see this new convert give him a Shout Out! Congratulations, bro!!!!!!!!!

While I'm on the subject of Sat AM Outreach let me give a shout out to the 35-40 people who came for the MEGA BLITZ last Saturday! Bro. Brandon rented a flat bed truck! We jumped on, some dressed in costumes, others with their permanent masks on! Ray got the portable PA pumping with music and we were rocking and rolling! We headed to the neighborhood and blitzed the hood by knocking doors! We had a candy rain at every stop for the kids! They loved it! We announced to all who we were and that we would be coming back the next day to pick them up for service! We were doing as Jesus said to do, " Go to the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house my be filled (Luke 14:23). Sunday the buses were full! Along with that we, too, built our faith as we fulfilled the will of God! Remember, When I save others I save myself!

Save Others and Save Yourself!

The 2008 E Group gathering is now history! 52 young men gathered together to quest for Apostolic ministry! Each session was power packed! Each session concluded with a time of "Fervent Prayer"! This cemented the messages to our spirits as we strove to strength our desire to become Men Seeking God! The passion for God of the young men was refreshing and extremely uplifting!



Many thoughts came to my mind during this time but one thought of Bro. Nathan Urshan II has stayed with me! In fact, I have quoted it to others, to help them understand the importance of soul winning in the life of the child of God. Bro. Urshan started a church at the age of 22 in Ft. Myers, Florida. Ten years later the congregation numbers approximately 200! When I think of that I get excited thinking about the souls that have been saved through his step of faith! Yet he stated: When I was saving others I was saving myself! In other words when you are teaching someone else not only do they get the benefit of salvation but you have to dig to find out what you really believe! It forces you to seek God! When you do that, you save your own self! He had evangelized a number of years, his name opening doors to preach in large churches yet his spiritual growth rate would increase dramatically when he began teaching someone a Home Bible Study! We ended our time at E Group with a challenge to each other to start teaching one Bible Study by December 1st! Not only will we save others but each young man will begin to build a solid foundation of Apostolic Beliefs! This foundation will support his Apostolic Ministry!

This what has happened in the life of Bro. Jason Carr! He had expressed that he wanted to teach a Bible Study and see someone to receive the Holy Ghost! He started a study at his parents house in Beaumont to a High School friend. Dan and his wife Charisse, have been attending the study for a number of weeks! Sunday, October 5th was a great day for two people, Dan and Bro. Jason. It was a special day for Dan because he received the gift of the Spirit that is evidenced by speaking in tongues. It was special for Bro. Jason because he saw someone he taught become a Child of God! The experience is helping both of them to be saved! Dan gets the words of truth from a friend and Bro. Jason gets reminded of those truths as he teaches and sees his friend experience God! Faith in the Word of God grows in each of their hearts as they experience the work of the Spirit.

Why don't you work on your salvation and join the E Group in a quest to teach a Bible Study! Try to start one before Dec 1st! That study will be the means to not only someone else's salvation but also your own!

Never Spiritually Retire!

Wow! What a great picture! Bro. Paul Price, age 86 and Bro. Ellsworth, age 87! Two men who are in their 80's each on a Spiritual journey to know Jesus!

Bro. Ellsworth last year at the age of 86, received the gift of the Holy Spirit and was baptized in Jesus name! His religious background was Judaism. (As Bro. Price stated, he is a miracle! Coming to the Lord at 86 and being a Jew who begins to follow Jesus is a miracle! He's like the apostle Paul, a Jew who converts to Christianity!)

Bro. Ellsworth is growing by leaps and bounds in the Lord! Why? He has a desire to Grow! He doesn't want to stay at the same level! How is it happening? First, he never misses a Worship service! He comes ever time the doors are open even at Kids Revival (You ought to see him as he tries to participate in the kids songs! It a blast!) Second, he is in a small Connect group! Wednesday nights he comes to service and is in a small discipleship group. Tuesday's he's in the Men's Starbucks Bible study! Third, even at his age he is looking for places to Serve! He has dreamed of having a luncheon of Liberian food at the church and to sell the recipes for missions. Fourth, he is Reaching! He invites and has brought to church individuals from his trailer park. He is consistently sharing his love of God and this church with his neighbors! Even at 87 he wants to become!

This weekend was a special time for our church and myself personally as Bro. Paul Price ministered in a powerful way! He is on a spiritual growth journey also. He wants to Know Jesus!

He stated to me that he had served the Lord since being in high school! He became an evangelist after his pastor's wife had a dream and drove to Sacramento and told him that it was time to go into the ministry. He had been married for just six months! He quit his job that next day and went to his home church and preached his first revival! He then built his own travel trailer to be able to travel as an evangelist. After evangelizing be went to Napa California and started the church. Eventually he became the Superintendent of the Western District (the leader of all the ministers in California and Nevada). He became a speaker who was sought out to speak at major conferences of thousands! He would speak and it would inspire people!

But in his own personal life he was frustrated! He didn't feel like he was changing and becoming even though he was a pastor and leader of leaders! He wanted to change! He begin to seek the Lord and became desirous to really know the Lord! A radical experience happened! God spoke with him and it changed his total life! He knew what was to do: To Know the Lord and to lead others into the same experience! That has been his message for the last twenty years!

I am intrigued by his honesty and openness. He had served the Lord for over forty years but did not really know the Lord! He was in his sixties when this spiritual event happen!

As I look at these two men, I am challenged to be a lifelong learner! I never want to stop in my quest to grow in God! I want to understand that I can never retire in my spiritual journey. I never want to think that I have arrived! I want to understand that my greatest days are ahead of me not behind me! I want to follow these men and grow spiritually as long as I have breath! Why don't you join us in the quest to grow spiritually and to really Know Jesus!