The Shepherd's Staff, World MAP's

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DigOct08:DigJul05 10/8/2008 2:14 PM Page 10 THE GALILEE ZONE ACTS Hopeful Maps Out Vibrant Ministry Landscape by Keith G. Balser “I am a church worker in Asia, Africa or Latin America and I preach or teach from the Bible to 20 or more persons at least once a week” is a key qualification on the ACTS Magazine/Shepherd’s Staff application form. A church leader in Tanzania captured the spirit of that requirement in especially eloquent form when he wrote us this letter of request: “Praise the Lord!! It’s my hope that everything is going on well at World MAP. Pass my sincere greetings to all. May God bless you all in serving our Lord Jesus Christ. “Recently I came across your ACTS publication (Swahili version). After carefully reading that publication, I was delighted and came to a conclusion to be one of your recipients. By reading your lessons in ACTS, I’m sure my knowledge of the Word will be enhanced so as to lead me to live a victorious Christian life. Also to share with others the knowledge of the Word, thereby serving our Lord Jesus Christ. “My relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ is as follows: I’m a born-again Christian. I’m a member of a Bible church in Arusha town. In serving our Lord Jesus Christ, churchwise Arusha town is divided into five zones. Each zone is led by a zonal leader who works under the church senior pastor. A zone comprises a minimum of three sections headed by section leaders. A section is made up of at least two home churches headed by home church leaders. “I’m one of the zonal leaders. My zone goes by the name, Galilee Zone. As a zonal leader, my duties in serving our Lord Jesus Christ are as follows: • to make sure those under my leadership live in harmony as Christians; • to help each other at times of trouble and to rejoice together at times of joy; 10 • WORLD MAP DIGEST • to make sure everyone strides forward in faith, to strengthen the lukewarm and to make a follow-up of backsliders and put them back on course; • to make sure everyone is engaged in winning souls for Jesus Christ; • to make sure each home church conducts weekly prayers (held on Thursdays) and home church gatherings (held on Saturdays); • any other duty which may arise in serving our Lord Jesus Christ. “Besides being a zonal leader, I’m a section and a home church leader too. At present my zone comprises three sections and six home churches. They average 30 members. Our goal by God’s grace is to double in the near future. “At the central church every Tuesday, classes are conducted for the newly born again. I do teach one of the classes and I really enjoy it. “Due to these facts, I feel I qualify to be one of your recipients of your ACTS publication. It is my hope I’ll be considered.” And it is our joy and privilege to add him to our ACTS Magazine mailing list, and to send him a free copy of The Shepherd’s Staff, World MAP’s “Bible School in a Book”. What an honor to partner in the Gospel with faithful and diligent saints such as this brother. We thank God that we are able to assist him in his very fruitful ministry efforts. And we’re thankful for your help in making this possible! WMAP
DigOct08:DigJul05 10/8/2008 2:14 PM Page 11 The Evangelist And Evangelism – Taking The Gospel Into All The World! By Julie A. Young Edited for ACTS by Frank and Wendy Parrish Part Eight-A How God Prepares an Evangelist Editor’s Note: As the evangelist seeks to be used by God to make the Body of Christ grow, it is important that he not neglect his own growth. This section offers detailed guidelines for prayerful self-examination, with the goal of seeing the fruit of the Spirit manifest in and through the evangelist’s personal and ministerial life. God Desires Full Devotion When Jesus Christ became the Lord of your life, He became Lord of everything. Your plans, your talents and skills, your thoughts, your feelings, your family, your body, your life – all these now belong to Jesus Christ, not to you. If you have not given Him everything, from your heart, to do with as He wills, then do this today. Tell this to the Lord in prayer. Then every day, pray to be searched by the Holy Spirit, who brings conviction. Let Him show you the things that you need to freshly surrender to God. Confess and repent when you recognize sin or failure, selfishness or fleshly desires. Disciplining your flesh will make you a much stronger disciple of Christ. The Bible says to “humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God…” (1 Pet 5:6). Following is a list to help you examine your life. This is not about rules or outward conformity. This is a way to honestly evaluate your life and ministry, from the heart. These questions are meant to help you grow in your personal life and become a better tool in God’s hands. Be honest with yourself; and above all, be honest with God. We cannot fool God. He knows what is in our heart, and He sees everything about our lives. It is always best to approach God humbly, asking for His help and grace so that we can grow into stronger and more faithful servants of His. If some of these things are not yet true of you, but you want them to be, ask the Lord to help you. Then make time to actually do them! It has been said that we make time for what is truly important. If these things are important to you, you must begin to make time for them. An Evangelist’s Growth List • Do I spend regular time in prayer and Bible study each day? • Do I take time to listen to God, to wait for Him to speak and reveal His thoughts and plans to me? • Do I ask the Holy Spirit to search my life? Do I confess my sins regularly? • Do I study the Bible and plan carefully any preaching work I am to do? • Am I trying to improve myself in speech, appearance, knowledge of the Bible and my skills? • When I go to preach, do I have other believers with me? • Have I asked God to attend the ministry He has given me with His anointing and power? • Am I filled with the power of the Holy Spirit according to Acts 2? • Do I have people who will pray every day for my ministry and for me, especially when I go to preach or share the Gospel with others? Continued on page 14 WORLD MAP DIGEST • 11
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The Shepherd's Staff, World MAP's

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