Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Knowing God's Will
involves 7 things
These six are: 1. Salvation, 2. Revelation (Word of God), 3. Conviction (Obedience), 4. Dedication, 5. Supplication (Prayer), 6. Separation, and 7. Transformation.
1. Salvation
Ephesians 2:8-9—For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.
John 10:27—Jesus said, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."
2. Revelation (Word of God)
2 Timothy 2:15—Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.
Psalm 119:32—I shall run the way of Your commandments, for You will enlarge my heart.
2 Timothy 3:16-17—All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
Luke 11:28—But [Jesus] said, "On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God, and observe it."
Hebrews 5:14—But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
3. Conviction (Obedience)
John 14:15—Jesus said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
Matthew 7:21—Not everyone who says to Me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.
4. Dedication
Romans 12:1—I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
5. Supplication (Prayer)
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18—Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
6. Separation
Romans 12:2―And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
1 John 2:15-16—Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
7. Transformation
Romans 12:2―And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
2 Peter 3:18―But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Our prayer should be, "O Lord, not my will but Your will...
in my life
in my family
in my finances
in my schooling
in my job
in my friendships
in my desires
in my service
in my words
in my dreams for the future
in all my world.
O Lord, Your will be done...
nothing more
nothing less
nothing else.
Amen!"
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
A Few Statistics from Capetown 2010 Conference
(Found under: 01 Leadership Resources, 4-14 Global Initiative, 4-14 Booklet)
1. Christ followers as a % of total population
1990 – 2.5%
2005 – 4.7%
2. Estimated population of Christ followers
1990 – 87,535,000
2005 – 205,209,000
Average annual growth rate – 5.4%
3. Estimated total population
1990 – 3,441,271,000
2005 – 4,326,363,000
Average annual growth rate – 1.5%
4. The people of the 21st century will live in an urban world for the first time. Currently 50% of the world lives in an urban setting.
5. By the end of the 21st century 80% of the world will be urbanized.
6. The expanding slums and shantytowns of the world’s cities are already populated by one billion people. Nearly 40% of the developing world live in these dilapidated dwellings.
7. An estimated 10 million children suffer forced prostitution.
8. Malnutrition kills 35,000 children under five every day.
9. The number of street children has grown to 160 million.
10. 10/40 Window Statistics
Christ followers as a % of total population
In 1990: 2.5%
In 2005: 4.7%
Estimated population of Christ followers
In 1990: 87,535,000
In 2005: 205,209,000
Average annual growth rate: 5.4%
Estimated total population
In 1990: 3,441,271,000
In 2005: 4,326,363,000
Average annual growth rate: 1.5%
11. Population of children ages 5 to 14:
Top 10 Countries
India: 248,253,120
China: 180,084,594
Indonesia: 42,716,276
Nigeria: 42,716,276
USA: 41,819,347
Pakistan: 38,118,459
Bangladesh: 36,068,928
Brazil: 35,263,734
Ethiopia: 23,990,943
Mexico: 20,855,453
Total (Top 10): 709,595,962
Total (Others): 508,921,404
Global Total: 1,218,517,366
12. Our brains are 90% formed before we reach age 3 and 85% of our adult personality is formed by the time we reach 6 years of age.
13. Most people who will ever make a decision for Christ will do so before their 15th birthday. In the USA, nearly 85% of people who make a decision for Christ do so between the ages of 4 and 14. During the 20th Century, that age group was the single largest source of new believers for the American church.
14. By age 13, one’s spiritual identity is largely set in place . (George Barna)
15. By the time the typical child reaches age 9, the mental gears are shifted and the child begins to use internal cues to either confirm or challenge an existing perspective. As the child grows into adolescence, change becomes more and more difficult. By adulthood, only with great effort or under great influence will a person replace existing views and understandings.
16. Adults essentially carry out the beliefs they embraced when they were young. (Barna) This view challenges the stages of intellectual development formulated by Jean Piaget, et. al., contending that one must reach the age of 15 to be capable of reasoning as an adult.
17. More than 91 million children under 5 suffer from debilitating hunger. (36 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
18. 15 million children are orphaned as a result of AIDS. (36 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
19. 265 million children have not been immunized against any disease. (38 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
20. U.N. officials estimated in 2008 that about 33 million people worldwide are HIV-positive, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa. For years, the news about this crisis grew worse and worse; but now things are changing in some hard-hit areas. In fact, the full-scale reversal of AIDS is underway in the country where the crisis began—Uganda.
21. The physical health needs of children and youth are closely related to the broader problems of poverty. The staggering reality is that more than one billion of the world’s children—56%— are living in poverty or severe deprivation! (Stephen Langa, (Executive Director, Family Life Network, Uganda), discussion with the author, April 2006) A stunning 37% of the world’s children—more than 674 million (D. Gordon, et.al., Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World, Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003)— live in absolute poverty. Additionally, children living in what is defined as “severe deprivation” struggle with a “lack of income and productive resources to ensure sustainable livelihoods.” They are also victims of “hunger and malnutrition, ill health, limited access or lack of access to education and other basic services, increased morbidity and mortality from illness, homelessness and inadequate housing, unsafe environments, social discrimination and exclusion.” (D. Gordon, et.al., Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World, Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003)
22. World Orphan Population
India: 25,700,000
China: 20,600,000
Nigeria: 8,600,000
Indonesia: 5,300,000
Ethiopia: 4,800,000
Bangladesh: 4,400,000
Pakistan: 4,400,000
Congo: 4,200,000
Brazil: 3,700,000
South Africa: 2,500,000
23. Over one-third of children have to live in dwellings with more than five people per room.
24. 134 million children have no access to any school whatsoever.
25. Over half a billion children have no toilet facilities whatsoever.
26. Almost half a billion children lack access to published information of any kind.
27. 376 million children have more than 15-minute walk to water and/or are using unsafe water sources. (Dan Brewster and Patrick McDonald, “Children: The Great Omission,” Lausanne 2004 Forum, http://www.viva.org/en/articles/great_omission/great_ omission_booklet.pdf (accessed February 17, 2009).
28. According to the World Health Organization, 85% of the world’s orphans are between the ages of 4 and 14.
29. According to the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, at least 300,000 children, many as young as 10 years of age, are currently participating as “child soldiers” in armed conflicts around the world.
30. But the fact is that it is not just poor children who are at risk. Actually, all children are at risk. Millions are at risk from poverty, but millions are also at risk from prosperity! Many children and young people today have everything to live with, but nothing to live for. (Stephen Langa, Executive Director, Family Life Network, Uganda, discussion with the author, April 2006)
(Found under: 01 Leadership Resources, 4-14 Global Initiative, 4-14 Strategy Handbook)
31. The 4/14 Regions
Africa
Middle East
Latin America —Hispanic
Latin America—Portuguese
Europe — Former Western
Europe — Former Eastern
North America
East Asia
South Asia
Southeast Asia
North Asia
Central Asia
South Pacific/Oceania
Caribbean
(Found under: 01 Leadership Resources, 4-14 Global Initiative, 4-14 Window Golden Age of Opportunity Brochure)
32. The most compelling fact regarding the relationship between the 10/40 and the 4/14 windows is that our efforts should be refocused on the 4/14 within the 10/40 in order to reach the most receptive persons in the area of the greatest need and opportunity.
33. A country-by-country comparison of the nations with the most age 4-to-14ers is revealing. India, with almost 20% fewer people than China, has over 30% more children and youth. This is largely due to China’s controversial “one child” policy. Nigeria and Indonesia, with half the population of the U.S., actually have more children and young teens in absolute numbers. In the U.S., 25% of the nearly 42 million school-age children are Hispanic—though Hispanics comprise only 15% of the general population. In Africa and in places such as Gaza, Afghanistan and Pakistan, 40 to 50% of the population is under age 15.
compiled by Kim Craig for Doug Nichols, ACTION Founder
1. Christ followers as a % of total population
1990 – 2.5%
2005 – 4.7%
2. Estimated population of Christ followers
1990 – 87,535,000
2005 – 205,209,000
Average annual growth rate – 5.4%
3. Estimated total population
1990 – 3,441,271,000
2005 – 4,326,363,000
Average annual growth rate – 1.5%
4. The people of the 21st century will live in an urban world for the first time. Currently 50% of the world lives in an urban setting.
5. By the end of the 21st century 80% of the world will be urbanized.
6. The expanding slums and shantytowns of the world’s cities are already populated by one billion people. Nearly 40% of the developing world live in these dilapidated dwellings.
7. An estimated 10 million children suffer forced prostitution.
8. Malnutrition kills 35,000 children under five every day.
9. The number of street children has grown to 160 million.
10. 10/40 Window Statistics
Christ followers as a % of total population
In 1990: 2.5%
In 2005: 4.7%
Estimated population of Christ followers
In 1990: 87,535,000
In 2005: 205,209,000
Average annual growth rate: 5.4%
Estimated total population
In 1990: 3,441,271,000
In 2005: 4,326,363,000
Average annual growth rate: 1.5%
11. Population of children ages 5 to 14:
Top 10 Countries
India: 248,253,120
China: 180,084,594
Indonesia: 42,716,276
Nigeria: 42,716,276
USA: 41,819,347
Pakistan: 38,118,459
Bangladesh: 36,068,928
Brazil: 35,263,734
Ethiopia: 23,990,943
Mexico: 20,855,453
Total (Top 10): 709,595,962
Total (Others): 508,921,404
Global Total: 1,218,517,366
12. Our brains are 90% formed before we reach age 3 and 85% of our adult personality is formed by the time we reach 6 years of age.
13. Most people who will ever make a decision for Christ will do so before their 15th birthday. In the USA, nearly 85% of people who make a decision for Christ do so between the ages of 4 and 14. During the 20th Century, that age group was the single largest source of new believers for the American church.
14. By age 13, one’s spiritual identity is largely set in place . (George Barna)
15. By the time the typical child reaches age 9, the mental gears are shifted and the child begins to use internal cues to either confirm or challenge an existing perspective. As the child grows into adolescence, change becomes more and more difficult. By adulthood, only with great effort or under great influence will a person replace existing views and understandings.
16. Adults essentially carry out the beliefs they embraced when they were young. (Barna) This view challenges the stages of intellectual development formulated by Jean Piaget, et. al., contending that one must reach the age of 15 to be capable of reasoning as an adult.
17. More than 91 million children under 5 suffer from debilitating hunger. (36 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
18. 15 million children are orphaned as a result of AIDS. (36 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
19. 265 million children have not been immunized against any disease. (38 D. Gordon, et.al, Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World (Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003).
20. U.N. officials estimated in 2008 that about 33 million people worldwide are HIV-positive, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa. For years, the news about this crisis grew worse and worse; but now things are changing in some hard-hit areas. In fact, the full-scale reversal of AIDS is underway in the country where the crisis began—Uganda.
21. The physical health needs of children and youth are closely related to the broader problems of poverty. The staggering reality is that more than one billion of the world’s children—56%— are living in poverty or severe deprivation! (Stephen Langa, (Executive Director, Family Life Network, Uganda), discussion with the author, April 2006) A stunning 37% of the world’s children—more than 674 million (D. Gordon, et.al., Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World, Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003)— live in absolute poverty. Additionally, children living in what is defined as “severe deprivation” struggle with a “lack of income and productive resources to ensure sustainable livelihoods.” They are also victims of “hunger and malnutrition, ill health, limited access or lack of access to education and other basic services, increased morbidity and mortality from illness, homelessness and inadequate housing, unsafe environments, social discrimination and exclusion.” (D. Gordon, et.al., Study: Child Poverty in the Developing World, Bristol, UK: Centre for International Poverty Research, 2003)
22. World Orphan Population
India: 25,700,000
China: 20,600,000
Nigeria: 8,600,000
Indonesia: 5,300,000
Ethiopia: 4,800,000
Bangladesh: 4,400,000
Pakistan: 4,400,000
Congo: 4,200,000
Brazil: 3,700,000
South Africa: 2,500,000
23. Over one-third of children have to live in dwellings with more than five people per room.
24. 134 million children have no access to any school whatsoever.
25. Over half a billion children have no toilet facilities whatsoever.
26. Almost half a billion children lack access to published information of any kind.
27. 376 million children have more than 15-minute walk to water and/or are using unsafe water sources. (Dan Brewster and Patrick McDonald, “Children: The Great Omission,” Lausanne 2004 Forum, http://www.viva.org/en/articles/great_omission/great_ omission_booklet.pdf (accessed February 17, 2009).
28. According to the World Health Organization, 85% of the world’s orphans are between the ages of 4 and 14.
29. According to the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, at least 300,000 children, many as young as 10 years of age, are currently participating as “child soldiers” in armed conflicts around the world.
30. But the fact is that it is not just poor children who are at risk. Actually, all children are at risk. Millions are at risk from poverty, but millions are also at risk from prosperity! Many children and young people today have everything to live with, but nothing to live for. (Stephen Langa, Executive Director, Family Life Network, Uganda, discussion with the author, April 2006)
(Found under: 01 Leadership Resources, 4-14 Global Initiative, 4-14 Strategy Handbook)
31. The 4/14 Regions
Africa
Middle East
Latin America —Hispanic
Latin America—Portuguese
Europe — Former Western
Europe — Former Eastern
North America
East Asia
South Asia
Southeast Asia
North Asia
Central Asia
South Pacific/Oceania
Caribbean
(Found under: 01 Leadership Resources, 4-14 Global Initiative, 4-14 Window Golden Age of Opportunity Brochure)
32. The most compelling fact regarding the relationship between the 10/40 and the 4/14 windows is that our efforts should be refocused on the 4/14 within the 10/40 in order to reach the most receptive persons in the area of the greatest need and opportunity.
33. A country-by-country comparison of the nations with the most age 4-to-14ers is revealing. India, with almost 20% fewer people than China, has over 30% more children and youth. This is largely due to China’s controversial “one child” policy. Nigeria and Indonesia, with half the population of the U.S., actually have more children and young teens in absolute numbers. In the U.S., 25% of the nearly 42 million school-age children are Hispanic—though Hispanics comprise only 15% of the general population. In Africa and in places such as Gaza, Afghanistan and Pakistan, 40 to 50% of the population is under age 15.
compiled by Kim Craig for Doug Nichols, ACTION Founder
Monday, August 22, 2011
Advice to New Missionaries
by Doug Nichols
1.No Bible, no breakfast! Do regular daily devotions and be serious about this. “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 197:97, nasb)
2.Read! Read! Read! Read good books and read the Bible through at least once yearly! “Grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18, nasb). Someone said, “If you do not read, you will not grow.”
3.Live by faith. “But my Righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him” (Hebrews 10:38, nasb).
4.Build friendships with local believers, unbelievers and fellow missionaries. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1, nasb).
5.Network for the glory of God. “…but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another…” (1 Peter 1:7, nasb).
6.Preach the Gospel to others. “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, nasb).
7.Practice hospitality whether you are single or married and do this often. “Be hospitable to one another without complaint” (1 Peter 4:9, nasb).
8.Learn to love the Savior, love saints, and love sinners. “…You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:38-39, nasb).
9.Put on humility daily. “… clothe yourselves with humility toward one another…” (1 Peter 5:5b).
10.Be a servant of Christ by serving others. Remember manners are “the kindness of Christ in action.” “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ…” (1 Peter 4:10-11, nasb).
1.No Bible, no breakfast! Do regular daily devotions and be serious about this. “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 197:97, nasb)
2.Read! Read! Read! Read good books and read the Bible through at least once yearly! “Grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18, nasb). Someone said, “If you do not read, you will not grow.”
3.Live by faith. “But my Righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him” (Hebrews 10:38, nasb).
4.Build friendships with local believers, unbelievers and fellow missionaries. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1, nasb).
5.Network for the glory of God. “…but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another…” (1 Peter 1:7, nasb).
6.Preach the Gospel to others. “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, nasb).
7.Practice hospitality whether you are single or married and do this often. “Be hospitable to one another without complaint” (1 Peter 4:9, nasb).
8.Learn to love the Savior, love saints, and love sinners. “…You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:38-39, nasb).
9.Put on humility daily. “… clothe yourselves with humility toward one another…” (1 Peter 5:5b).
10.Be a servant of Christ by serving others. Remember manners are “the kindness of Christ in action.” “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ…” (1 Peter 4:10-11, nasb).
Monday, August 1, 2011
Time in the Word of God
There are many programs available to help you read through the Bible in one year. This year as last year, I have simply divided up my Bible in 360 days to read the Old Testament once(2 1/2 OT pages daily) and New Testament three times (2 1/2 pages of New Testament daily). This is only 20 to 30 minutes daily. I would encourage you to do something similar. Charles Colson said, "If we really understand what being a Christian means-that this Christ, the living God, actually comes in to rule one's life -then everything must change: values, goals, priorities, desires, and habits." A great habit is to spend time in Word of God; no Bible no breakfast!
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