The theme for the week of the 2015 Fall Meeting of the Baptist Bible Fellowship is Revitalization. The second night, Tuesday, was sensational! The music was powerful and passionate. It is held at High Street Baptist Church in Springfield, Missouri.
We had two great speakers tonight. One was a missionary in a restricted access country that is having a tremendous impact among refugees. Due to the nature of his ministry, I have omitted his name and other details. The other, Gene Appel, is the pastor of Eastside Christian Church in Anaheim, California. Below are some of what was said tonight. I hope it encourages and revitalizes you!
Revitalization of Missions – Restricted Access Missionary
A ministry to the ‘nation of the displaced.’ There are over 51 million people in the world who have been displaced from their homes due to civil strife, exile, war, natural disasters, etc. If it were a country, it would be the 26th largest in the world. 50% are children. They are hurting and abandoned.
In Matthew, Jesus is walking through mid-Eastern cities healing every sickness. But when he saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
It reminds us of the displaced people in the world today. Many are people who are leaving and abandoning Islam.
Jesus gave us the strategy for this situation – Pray. Our hearts are not in tune with God and others till we pray. Prayer is not the only thing but it is the first thing we must do if we get anything great done.
Psalm 9:9 is a great verse to refugees. It gives them a great promise. “The Lord will be a refuge for the oppressed; a refuge in times of trouble.”
There are many refugees today from Iraq in Syria and Lebanon. Some are Christians. Some are Muslims. One method of pointing them to Jesus is starting churches through Bible studies. These Bible studies are obedience-based. They discover what they should do, and do that during the week, and then report back.
The goal is to have 100 churches in 2 years, 3 generations deep. 3 generations is one church birthing a church that births a third church. If anyone wants to donate, go to www.project99.help. It is from Psalm 9:9. 99 families have been identified that need help. $99 will feed one family for one month.
Revitalization through Change and Pain. -Gene Appel
Life is continually changing. And with change comes some pain. Change can be hard but it can also be good. Only those who are willing to go through the pain of change will receive the joy of transformation and blessing. Most don’t because of the work it takes to get there.
With change you get conflict. That follows with confusion. You lose your courage about why you’re leading change. Then we often fall to comparison. We compare with other churches or ministers. We get discouraged. And often a personal crisis comes in your life that totally destroys you. And life becomes chaos.
1. Guard your overreaction. 2 Timothy 2:24-26
If God wants you to be a change agent, not everybody will like you. Jesus couldn’t please everybody (John 5:30). Not pleasing everybody means sometimes people will leave your church. But whether you make changes or not, people will leave. So we can choose why they leave.
Don’t get sidetracked by the criticism. The worst thing that can happen if we make changes based on values is people will leave and go to another church and still go to heaven. But the worst thing that can happen if we don’t make changes based on values is lost people we haven’t reached won’t hear and trust Christ and miss Heaven.
2. Clarify why you do what you do.
It is easy to do many things. But it is important to prepare people for the day they die.
3. Don’t discouragement get you down.
It is easy to be discouraged by comparing to multi-talented people and church. Sometimes it can paralyze you. One way to deal with it is to joyfully celebrate the unique way God has made us and them.
4. Let God work in you during times of pain.
Pain teaches you principles that nothing else will. Sometimes we think that in pain God puts us on the shelf. We feel so unuseable for God. But you will find out, that if God can energize and use you during a crisis and when you can’t do it, you realize that it’s not you when times are good.
When God works in you He is also working through you in a time of pain. Nothing is more important than what we have dedicated our lives to. Whatever we go through, God will make a way. He will use you.
Gene Appel has been the senior pastor at Eastside Christian Church in Anaheim, California since 2008. He is a gifted leader with a passion for following Christ and a love for people. He coaches church leaders around the word on how to lead through healthy change. He has as lead pastor at Willow Creek Community Church as well as Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, Nevada, which grew from 450 to 8,000 in its weekly services. He has also co-authored the book ‘How to Change Your Church Without Killing It.’
You can read my other articles about this meeting at: Revitalization.