The Gospel Commandments of Leadership

This was written (by Paul Chappell)  to those who serve others in the ministry, but the list can be applied to any form of leadership. This list outlines the plight of moms, especially those who have adopted special needs kids. There isn’t a lot of payback in the first few years, but we all hold out hope that one day we will be loved, and if not loved, at least respected for all the years of sacrifice and service we gave our children. And, if we never get that either, at least we know we did what God asked us to do. We know He loves us – sometimes that just has to be enough.

1.  People are illogical, unreasonable and self centered. Love and trust them anyway.

2.  If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Do good anyway.

3.  If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.

4.  The service you render today will be forgotten tomorrow. Serve people anyway.

5.  Honesty and frankness will make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.

6.  The biggest men with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men with the smallest ideas. Think big anyway.

7.  People pretend to love the “little” people but sell their souls to the “big” people. Fight for the “little” people anyway.

8. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.

9. People really need help but may attack you if you do help. Help people anyway.

10. Give the world the best you have, and you’ll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.

Recognize these Words?

“That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.”

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/index.htm

Free Chocolate!

For free chocolate, register here. The first 250,000 people to register will receive a coupon through the mail for a candy bar -  Dove , M & Ms, 3 Musketeers, Twix, Milky Way, or Snickers. Only 4 coupon requests per address are allowed. I did this a couple of weeks ago and received four coupons for our family.

Kids Bowl Free

Many states have a summer program for kids under 15 that allows kids to bowl free all summer. Check it out here.

What is Involved in Forgiveness?

We were greeted recently by a young man who at one time was sinned against by some of our children. He was smiling as he shook our hand! To be honest, I was pleasantly surprised by his genuine friendliness. This young man is living his Christianity. This young man was showing the love of Christ by exhibiting genuine forgiveness.

Does “forgive” mean that we no longer hold a grudge or think ill of a person? Does it mean we say, “OK” then turn around and punish them to make ourselves feel better? Is it our responsibility as the offended to make sure they learn from their mistake? Or does it mean that we have compassion on the one who sinned against us and are willing to show mercy to them and help them become more faithful Christians?  Here is a Biblical account of what genuine forgiveness is and what God expects of believers. My comments about the verses are in red:

Matthew 18:21 ”Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. (Please note here that the debtor just asked for an extension, but the king chose to forgive the debt completely. Notice also that the king did not punish the debtor. The king is a type of Christ - an example of heart felt forgiveness born out of compassion.)

But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.  (This man not only denied an extension, but he also punished the debtor. Though done in a lawful way, he sought revenge for being sinned against.)

So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. (This is the result of a unloving and unforgiving attitude. It affects more than just the two involved.) Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. (This is a very scary position to be in!)

If we really forgive, I believe it will show in our treatment of the one we have forgiven. I’m not saying they become our best friend or we approve of what they did or that we need to ignore the circumstances. But I am saying that true forgiveness comes when the offender repents of their offense, makes it right, and asks the offended to forgive them. They in turn provide the forgiveness that completes the process of reconcilliation. Forgiveness should bring reconcilliation. After all, when we sinned against God and asked forgiveness, He faithfully granted the forgiveness and opened the gate of Heaven for us. We are reconciled with the Father. There is nothing between us and we can fellowship without resentment or guilt.

Have you ever offended someone, asked forgiveness, but then felt very uncomfortable when you saw them next? Or has someone sinned against you and you avoid them or turn the cold shoulder when  you see them? Do you know of someone who has sinned against someone you know and care about and then you have a hard time looking at them in the eye or feel the need to shun them (or their family members) when you see them in a crowd? Do you have trouble greeting them or someone in their family when you see them next? If you are the offender and you have asked forgiveness, do you feel uncomfortable when you see them next, even though they have said they forgive you? If any of the above is true, then the process of true forgiveness has not been completed.

For you see, having adopted as many special needs kids as we have, we’ve had our “share of shunnings.” Even though we are known for being very strict parents, following through and taking care of each offence when one or more of our kids have sinned against someone, we have often been treated as if we were the offenders, and our kids are “marked off their list” of valued people. When those same kids realize this, more problems come along because they will react to being considered less than worthy of others’ love and friendship. I’ve seen this over and over in my family. When these kids come into adolescence (which by the way lasts way longer than the average kid), in their limited reasoning, they feel they have a right to retaliate because they’ve pent up so much anger. They are angry about their past, present and future.  That’s why you see so many kids get into trouble with the law and make seriously bad choices. They are punishing the world for how they are received – which ultimately turns around and punishes them. It’s the way of the world – a perpetual circle of sin.

I honestly don’t think this is what God intended for His people. After all, He has forgiven all of us who claim the name of Christ, ought we not extend the same complete forgiveness to those who wish to be forgiven? Should not the Christian realm be different from the world?  Besides, if families are willing to step out and take in the children who are considered unwanted in this world, should they not have the support of fellow Christians? If anyone takes in children who have suffered at the hand of this world, there will be serious problems as a result of that decision. If these children are adopted by Christians, ought they not be received as we were received of God at salvation - forgiven and loved?

I would say about 50% of Christians in our world have exhibited this type of forgiveness to our “interesting’” children. The other 50% apparently think they are perfect and don’t feel the need to forgive others. They carry around an obvious disdain for our family because sin has been so very rampant in many of our children – dispite our teaching, training and admonitions to them.  I am hoping the love of the first, forgiving group of Christians, can overcome the bitterness that has been stirred in the hearts of our children by the second, unforgiving group. Considering the weaknesses and fragile emotional state of my kids, I highly doubt it will.  We are all held accountable – the sinner and the one who was sinned against. We can’t expect God to forgive us completely and then turn around and not extend that forgiveness to others. Unfortunately, some of our children have found the world to be much more forgiving than fellow Christians. Why do you think this is so?

Luke 7:41 “There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.”

Katie Goes Skydiving

For her 25th birthday, our Katie Beth went skydiving!  We used to call her Katie Boo Boo because she was constantly hurting herself when she was a kid.  I told her after the jump that she has earned the right to drop the Boo Boo part of her name.  This mother is very glad she landed safe and sound!

Update on “Pastors Falsely Arrested”

This is an email my friend received about the family and their pastor that were falsely arrested:

“The hearing was today and it was not exactly a victory but it wasn’t a loss either… Nate and Beth Burns were able to get out of jail this morning because they got a ROA Bond. Basically they didn’t have to pay the full $25,000 but they had to agree to not have any contact with Aaron [Sr. Pastor charged for giving them "legal" advice] or with their baby Alethia. There was a large group of about 100 people outside the courthouse to show their support for the Burns as they went in. There was no Guilty or Not guilty decision made. The hearing ended up with the judge and lawyers deliberating behind closed doors for 1.5 hours and agreeing to a deal that would allow Nate and Beth to have their daughter back with the following conditions….. Alethia remains a ward of the state… she has regular Dr. visits (up to this point she had not been going to the Dr for vaccinations)… they stay on WIC…. her mom goes to some parenting class or something like that… after 6 weeks they will be reviewed to see if they did everything they were supposed to do and then maybe they will have full custody of their daughter again.

Because of the ROA Bond stipulation they still can’t take Alethia home until the prosecutor who had them arrested on Fri. can review what happened in court today and agrees to the terms. This may take a few days so please pray that they will get their daughter back soon. I can’t even imagine how awful it would be if someone took Brianna [Sr. Pastor's daughter] away–I would have to be arrested too but the charges wouldn’t be child abuse!!!!! As far as Aaron [Sr. Pastor] goes, his hearing is supposed to be on July 8th, but his attorney is trying to get a change of venue (different town and different judge) so that date might end up getting changed. Aaron has talked to a number of different lawyers and the CLA. Unfortunately the CLA can’t get involved with the Burns because they only deal with church cases and not family situations. However when they found out that bail was $25,000 cash for two individuals with no criminal record that weren’t flight risks, they were very surprised. There are obviously ulterior motives behind these arrests/charges. It is an organized attack. They might step in to help with Aaron’s case because he is a Sr. Pastor.”

Reader’s Comment on “Pastors Falsely Arrested” Post

This is a comment I received today from C.Sister about my post, “Pastors Falsely Arrested.” 

“Amen Sister! The city of Kirksville has their “facts” a bit mixed up. To start with the child was one week over 9 mos. at the time of the incident (I prefer kidnapping) and the child was more than just 12 lbs. The state can not even get the TRUE facts straight, much less agree with the multiple medical reports.

God has His hand in this and His Truth will be revealed. Lies from the enemy are easier to believe than truth. The Lord God Almighty is great and is greatly to be praised. His Truth will be known and many will see His hand in power in this situation & all will see the love and power of the God who created them. Nathaniel, Elisabeth & Aaron will be greatly rewarded by their Maker for boldly proclaiming the Truth and faithfully serving Him.”

Trial Balloon

Dear Friend of Parental Rights,

Monday in a Harlem middle school, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice told a group of 120 students that administration officials are actively discussing “when and how it might be possible to join”  (that is, ratify) the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).  As before, she also communicated what a disgrace it is that the U.S. would stand with only Somalia against such a widely-accepted treaty.

This is the first direct public statement by the Obama administration that it will seek ratification of the UN CRC.

In my 30 years of political involvement, I have learned to recognize this as what is called a “trial balloon.” Like in World War I trench warfare, our opponents have “sent up a balloon” to see if it will draw fire. If things remain quiet, they will proceed with their plans to push for ratification of the CRC in the U.S. Senate.

To discourage them from doing so, we need to make sure that our voices are heard with unmistakable clarity.  We must let the Obama administration know that we oppose this anti-family, anti-American treaty.

Here’s what we need you all to do:

1.      Call the White House comments line at 202-456-1111. Tell them you heard the administration wants to ratify the CRC, and you strongly oppose this giving away of U.S. sovereignty to the UN. Also keep in mind that this treaty gives the government jurisdiction to override any decision made by any parent if the government thinks that a better decision can be made—even if there is no proof of any harm.

2.      Call Ambassador Susan Rice’s office at the United Nations. Tell her that you want her to represent the United States to the world rather than trying to get the United States to go along with international law initiated by the UN.  Her office number is 212-415-4000.

3.      Contact your Senators and urge them to oppose ratification of this treaty. (Find your Senators’ contact information by typing your zip code into the box here.) Ask them also to defeat it once and for all by cosponsoring SJRes 16 – the Parental Rights Amendment.

It is very important that we speak up right now.  Please call before you close this email!

Sincerely,

Michael Farris

Find this letter online.

Pastors Falsely Arrested

This was a prayer request posted by a friend on facebook:

Please pray for my older sister Vee and her husband Aaron Rodgerson. Aaron was just arrested a few hours ago. My brother-in-law is the pastor of a small church in Kirksville, MO. A few weeks ago social workers came in and took custody of a 10 month old baby Alethia whose dad is the assistant pastor. They were accused of child abuse because their daughter weighed only 12 pounds. She was otherwise completely healthy. She was taken away from her parents and put into a hospital where all kinds of tests were done to see what was wrong with her. All the tests showed that she was a normal baby who just happened to be small. They would not accept that and so were forcibly tube feeding Alethia to make her gain weight. She actually LOST weight while in the hospital–the poor baby was only allowed to be with her parents for 1 hour a day and ONLY if a social worker was present. They were giving her so much that she stopped eating completely.

They finally got her back up to the weight that she was before being admitted to the hospital and released her to foster care. Her parents would not plead guilty to child abuse so they are going to trial (next week I believe). She is still in foster care but is only allowed to be with her parents for 8 hours a day. These are good godly people who have done NOTHING wrong. Aaron was in a meeting of Reformers Anonymous at their church tonight when the police came in and arrested Nate and Elizabeth Burns(Alethia’s parents) and Aaron.

I believe Aaron is being charged with practicing law without a license and failure to report injury to a child. Both are completely bogus charges because a pastor is supposed to counsel his flock and Alethia was never harmed, so naturally there was nothing that Aaron should have reported. Aaron has ruffled a lot of feathers in the town of Kirksville because he has taken a stand against the gay/lesbian comunity and I think they are just looking for ways to get him out of the way. Please PLEASE pray that God will be in this situation. My poor sister called my mom when she was on her way to try and bail her husband out of jail. They have a precious 3 year old son Daniel and are concerned that social services is going to try and find a reason to take him away. They have been persecuted a lot for their faith (threatening emails, angry letters…..) America was founded on Christian principles but we are no longer a Christian nation.

Update:

Isaiah 5:20 says “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” That verse swirled in my head all night long because of events that took place around 8:30pm. My husband along with Nate and Elisabeth Burns were arrested. My husband had two charges: failure of mandated reporter to report child abuse/neglect or death of child under 18 and practicing law without a license–both misdemeanors; and we were able to meet his bond at $1,000. Nate and Beth have been charged with a felony–endangering the life of a child under 18; their bonds were set at $25,000 each. They are both in the county jail until we can meet bond or get their bonds reduced or even changed to RO bond (wouldn’t have to pay anything for release). All we know are the charges but no details on any “proof” the police had in order to generate a warrant. Pray for us. The trial regarding the original incident is this Monday at 1pm; these new circumstances will be addressed at a later date but obviously are affecting our lives at the moment.

**** ”Aaron’s charge of practicing law without a license is because he told the Burns that their constitutional rights were violated when Alethia was taken away. (Police literally barged into their home and took the baby without a warrant or anything.) So apparently now you have to be a lawyer to talk about our Constitution…”

Hate Crimes Bill Vote Coming Soon

Coming soon for a vote: The “Hate Crimes” bill will take away our religious freedoms  In simple language, here is what the hate crimes bill will do. Congress will soon be voting on the so-call “Hate Crimes” bill. If you want to understand what this battle is all about, click here. This material comes from Speechless – Silencing Christians. Don’t throw away some of your religious freedom by remaining silent. The purpose of this e-mail is not to sell the book, however you can purchase it if you desire. The purpose of this e-mail is to educate you about the horrors of this bill. After you read it, take action. Call your two senators and representative and ask them to vote against the “Hate Crimes” bill. You can reach all three at 202-224-3121.

Sincerely,Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman American Family Association

Are You in Bootcamp?

I’ve been receiving edevotions from Christian Womanhood and ran across one that made me think. You can sign up here if you’re interested in receiving them. Today’s devotion compared the Christian life with bootcamp. Here’s an excerpt:

“He loves us enough to stretch us farther than we think we can grow in wisdom and knowledge, grace and truth. He tests us each and every day, revealing our weaknesses, challenging our decision to live for Christ, testing our sincerity.

 He does all of this out of love, knowing that “…our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (II Corinthians 4:17).  He wants us to graduate from boot camp as mature, confident soldiers, able to stand before the Lord at the Judgment Seat and hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” (Matthew 25:23b).
 

My neighbor knew for a long time that he wanted to be in the Army. He knew when he signed up that boot camp was not going to be fun. He anticipated the fact that the officers were going to be very tough and that life was going to be difficult for a while. He knew all of this, yet he looked forward to joining the Army. He wanted to be a soldier.  If you are serious about serving God, you will pay a price to serve Him. Just like boot camp separates the men from the boys, Jesus Christ will bring trials into your life to make sure you really, really, want to be used by Him.”

 

She went on to say that by choice we are in God’s army and that our trials here on Earth are a sort of bootcamp that prepare us for our service to our Lord in Heaven. Not many make the choice, but the ones that do, stand out as true servants of God. As I look back on the past 20+ years, I see many hard times that some have said we “brought on ourselves.” I guess I have to agree with them. We did bring it on ourselves – by enlisting in God’s army and following our High Commander’s orders. If my son, who’s going to Afghanistan, experiences battle and is injured, would you say to him, “He brought it on himself?” Of course not! You will honor him as someone who put himself in harm’s way for the good of his country. He will have counted the cost. Our personal cost was great in our service for our King, but they were worth it – He was worth it. We didn’t know how much pain and heartache we’d encounter in His service when we signed up, but that doesn’t negate our offering to the One who made the ultimate sacrifice for us. What are you doing that shows you enlisted in His army?  James 2:18 “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.”

Companies Remove Ads From Homosexual Blog Site

Companies remove ads from homosexual blog site (OneNewsNow.com)

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The Obamacare Horror Story You Won’t Hear

The Obamacare horror story you won’t hear (OneNewsNow.com)

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America’s Economy

This is from an article in the St. Petersburg Times Newspaper on Sunday. The Business Section asked readers for ideas on “How Would You Fix the Economy?”

This was one submission:

 

Dear Mr. President:

 

Please find below my suggestion for fixing America’s economy.  Instead of giving billions of dollars to companies that will squander the money on lavish parties and unearned bonuses, use the following plan:

 

You can call it the Patriotic Retirement Plan.

 

There are about 40 million people over 50 in the work force. Pay them $1 million apiece severance for early retirement with the following stipulations:

 

 1) They MUST retire. Forty million job openings – Unemployment fixed.

 2) They MUST buy a new American CAR. Forty million cars ordered – Auto Industry fixed.
 3) They MUST either buy a house or pay off their mortgage – Housing
 Crisis fixed.

 

It can’t get any easier than that! If more money is needed, have all members of Congress and their constituents pay their taxes.

Those Who Did Neither

I have joined three Yahoo Groups – One for families of FASD children, one for those trying access post-adopt services, and one for those who have disrupted or dissolved their adoptions. The last one I joined to get a proper perspective of those who have willingly or by force been affected by adoption disruption/dissolution.  With permission of the writers, I will be featuring some of these stories in days to come. One adoptive mom in particular tugged at my heart strings when she questioned whether she’d made the right decision by not fighting those who were demanding her parental rights be terminated.  She would not allow her son to come back home after months in residential - she knew his repeated threats to kill the family would be carried out if allowed back home. So rather than working with the family within reasonable parameters, the powers that be dissolved this family against the wishes of each individual person in that family.  Those powers were responsible for bringing to fruition that which they fought against.

Here is  my response to her:

“I am very interested in your story and feel it needs to be told as much as a so called ’successful one’ must be told – maybe more so. We cannot enjoy the blessings of this world if we do not have anything to compare them to. It would also be of benefit for others to see the emotional and physical expenditures of those who hope to save a life through adoption. It should not be seen as serving ourselves, rather it must be seen as a service to our world, whether in service to mankind locally or over seas. I forever regret the pain we have endured at the hands of those who have no understanding of what we do as adoptive parents – yet I do not count it worthy to dwell on it either, simply because I did not do this for praise of man. The approval of my God is all I ought to consider – for it is everything. Though I doubt and wince, I do not fall at the feet of my critics. They will some day answer to my God – the One who called me to serve Him by loving children that were not considered worthy of my attention. Whether you cherished a child for a day or for their life time, you are counted more worthy than those who did neither.”

Those Who Love Us Best

“There’s one sad truth in life I’ve found, While journeying east and west
The only folks we really wound, Are those we love the best.
We flatter those we scarcely know, We please the fleeting guest,
And deal full many a thoughtless blow, To those who love us best.”
~Ella Wheeler Wilcox

April’s Creamy Leek and Potato Soup

I just made this soup tonight – it was deeelicious!

April’s Creamy Leek and Potato Soup

6 medium leeks (2 pounds), thickly sliced
4 medium potatoes (1 1/2 pounds), cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) ready to serve chicken or vegetable broth
1/4 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup half-and-half
Chopped fresh chives, if desired

1. Mix all ingredients except half-and-half and chives in crock pot.
2. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8-10 hours (or on high for 4-5 hours).
3. Pour vegetable mixture by batches into blender. Cover and blend on high until smooth; return to cooker. Stir in half-and-half. (I like it a little chunky, so I didn’t blend all of the vegis)
4. Cover and cook on low for 20 – 30 minutes or until hot. Sprinkle with chives.

Makes 8 servings.

Obama more than tolerant of homosexual lifestyle

Obama more than tolerant of homosexual lifestyle (OneNewsNow.com)

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Should Christians Help the Poor?

Should Christians help the poor? Throughout Proverbs we find that God tells us to be merciful and kind to the poor, yet I’ve also been told that if we do not couple that with the Gospel our efforts are in vain. I like to take the Word literally and say that we as Christians have an obligation to help the poor – especially in our communitites and churches because we love God and want to show His compassion. If we are walking in the Spirit, we will be a living example of what God can do for a person and our lives will point them to Christ. Of course we need to open our mouth and testify of Him, and that will happen if we make it our practice to testify of Him whenever we are given the opportunity. Our responsibilty is to “show” and “tell” by our actions and words. God will take care of the rest.

Below is part of an article that I found on a church website about how their church helps the poor.

“It does not make sense to do mercy work overseas and not at home.    This point was profoundly made over 100 years ago by a man named William Booth.    In 1890 the Christian explorer Henry Stanley published a book called In Darkest Africa. It told of the massive Africa civilizations untouched by the Christian West. The church was brimming with excitement over the foreign work, and many brave souls were leaving the comforts of their homeland to go and reach these forgotten people for Christ.     The same year, another man few people had heard of, William Booth, wrote a book called In Darkest . In it he painted a picture of the wretched conditions of the slums, the poor and working class in London, and the relative apathy of the English churches for the forgotten right outside her doors. ‘It doesn’t make sense to care for one and not the other,’ he said. In the introduction to the book he said,   ‘This summer the attention of the civilised world has been arrested by the story which Mr. Stanley has told of Darkest Africa and his journeyings across the heart of the Lost Continent… But while brooding over the awful presentation of life as it exists in the vast African forest, it seemed to me only too vivid a picture of many parts of our own land.

As there is a darkest Africa is there not also a darkest England?… think for a moment …strange it is that so much interest should be excited by a narrative of human squalor and human heroism in a distant continent, while greater squalor and heroism not less magnificent may be observed at our very doors.   If this were the first time that this wail of hopeless misery had sounded on our ears the matter would have been less serious. It is because we have heard it so often that the case is so desperate… It rises unceasing, year in and year out, and we are too busy or too idle, too indifferent or too selfish, to spare it a thought. … it is time, and high time, that the question were faced… with a resolute determination to make an end of the crying scandal of our age.   What a satire it is upon our Christianity and our civilisation that the existence of these colonies of (lost men and women) in the heart of our capital should attract so little attention! …  Why all (these ornate churches) to save men from a (hell) in a world which is to come, while never a helping hand is stretched out to save them from the inferno of their present life? Is it not time that… to rescue some at least of those for whom they profess to believe their Founder came to die?’    

Booth became the founder of the Salvation Army.    What then, do we then cease doing international missions? Not at all! It means we develop a missional mindset at home. Following the pattern of Acts 1:8, every church should have a strategy for church planting and mercy ministry that starts in her local area and extends around the world.  Our church recently took its first ‘mission trip’ to Durham. We modeled it like almost every international trip we’ve taken. We asked people to get off work. We formed teams. We raised money. We built houses. We partnered with other Christians. We’re a long way from causing ‘much joy’ in our city, but that is where we are headed.  Members of our church have begun to look at themselves as ‘chaplains’ assigned to their schools, neighborhoods and places of work. They are there when someone dies. They are there when someone has a need. Each is trying to discover how they can give signs of the Kingdom to their local communities.  Some of our members are ‘relocating’ to mission-fields right in Durham. A few members have sold their houses and moved into lower-income districts to have a ministry there. One member recently turned down a substantial promotion because he didn’t feel that God called him to move away from those to whom he was currently ministering at work. Retirees are asking how they can use their golden years not for golf but for ministry. One retiree recently said to me, ‘People keep telling me to move to the beach because I’ve earned it. At no point in my Christian life have I earned the right to live for myself.’”

Go to the Summit Church web page to read the rest of this article.

I challenge all Christians to show the love of God in whatever way the Holy Spirit directs. This may be lending a helping hand to an older saint, the neighbor who lost his job, or a small child who has no family. We must be atune to the Holy Spirit’s leading every moment of the day so we do not miss opportunities to serve God by meeting the needs of the poor. 

Prov. 14:21  “He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.”
Prov. 14:31  “He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.”

Prov. 19:17  ”He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.”  
Prov. 21:13 “Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.”

Prov. 28:27  ”He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.”
Prov. 29:7  “The righteous considereth the cause of the poor: but the wicked regardeth not to know it.”

Prov. 31:9 “Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy.”

The last one I dedicate to all those who are a friend to the poor and needy child (Though it is generally considered by most commentaries to be directed to Jesus’ disciples):

Matthew 10:42 “And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.”

Spurgeon commented on this passage, “He looked away from the apostles to some of the least and youngest of those who followed him, end he declared that the very least kindness shown to them should have its recompense. There may be a sea of warm love in ‘a cup of cold water.’  Much loyalty to the King may be expressed by little kindnesses to his servants, and perhaps more by kindness to the little ones among them than by friendship with the greater sort.

To love a poor and despised child of God for Christ’s sake shows greater love to Christ than if we love the honorable, and amiable, and rich members of his church. Acts of love are divinely estimated rather by motive than by measure. ‘A cup,’ and that ‘of cold water’, may mean as much from one as banquet from another. Cold water has a special value in a hot climate; but this text makes it precious anywhere. Giving refreshment may be made a choice means of fellowship with holy men, if we give it because they are disciples; and specially so when persecuting governments make it penal to succor the saints in any way.
 
Though every kindly deed is its own reward, yet the Lord promises a further recompense. What we give for Christ’s sake is insured against loss by the promise of the text, by the ‘Verily, I say unto you,’ which confirms
it, and by the use of the negative ‘in no wise,’ which shuts out all possibility of its being otherwise.”