Ministry Today – Serving and empowering church leaders

Has the Spirit of the World Entered Your Congregation?

Published on Thursday, 29 November 2012 13:42

Written by Jamie Buckingham

worldliness The head of a large missionary organization told me that they are being sued by two of their members. These people had earlier dedicated their lives to missions.

Now they have various ailments. One man has ulcers. A woman, who lived in the tropics, has skin cancer. A "Christian" lawyer, hearing of their problems, advised them to sue the missionary organization. Their afflictions, he says, are "job related."

The mission director shook his head. "They were willing to give their lives—but I guess that didn't include stomach and skin." The missionaries and their lawyer have been infected with what Paul called "the spirit of the world" (1 Cor. 2:12).

Despite the classic Pentecostal definition, worldliness (the Greek word is kosmos) is far more than cosmetics. It is also more than R-rated movies or X-rated prostitutes. Worldliness is focusing on the things of time rather than things eternal.

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Saddleback Church Kicks Off Effort to Get to Zero Orphans in Rwanda on World AIDS Day

Published on Thursday, 29 November 2012 09:00

Written by Elizabeth Sanchez

In honor of World AIDS Day on Dec. 1, Saddleback Church is setting its own goal of reaching zero orphans throughout Rwanda by 2015. The target is supplemental to UNAIDS' three-year strategy of "Getting to Zero," including zero babies born of HIV, zero AIDS-related deaths, zero new HIV infections and zero stigma and discrimination.

"This is a very audacious goal—to help a country be the first to empty their orphanages, helping 3,000 children become part of permanent families, but we know with God all things are possible," says Kay Warren, founder of Saddleback Church's HIV&AIDS Initiative. "The church has the largest participation, widest distribution, simplest administration, fastest proliferation, longest continuation, strongest authorization and highest motivation to help with this health crisis. For that reason, the local church is key to getting to zero."

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Steve Hill, John Kilpatrick Reunite in 'Revival Reunion'

Published on Wednesday, 28 November 2012 16:00

Written by Ann Carroll

Revival-Reunion GOD TV is to air an extraordinary live broadcast this weekend featuring Steve Hill of the Brownsville Revival of the 1990s and Nathan Morris of the current Bay Revival, together with pastor John Kilpatrick, the host of both spiritual outpourings.

Revival Reunion, happening at the Mobile Convention Center in Alabama, will be broadcast exclusively on GOD TV at 9 p.m. (EST) Friday and will also feature worship led by Lindell Cooley and Lydia Stanley Marrow.

The Brownsville Revival ran from 1995 to 2000, attracting more than 4 million people to Pensacola, Fla. Often televised on GOD TV, it was characterized by passionate salvation messages from evangelist Steve Hill, a call to holiness from Kilpatrick and worship led by Cooley.

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Study: Online Presence Boosts Year-End Giving

Published on Wednesday, 28 November 2012 12:00

Written by Jason Millgram

Money-Year-End-Giving I’m sure most Ministry Today readers are very aware that year-end giving campaigns are perhaps the most important fund-raising time for non-profit organizations. With 41 percent of all donations occurring in the last few weeks of December, the year-end campaign is a make or break proposition for many churches and most non-profits.

While you are crafting your year-end campaign I wanted to make sure you didn’t neglect the fastest growing way to connect with new givers—your online presence.

First, lets examine the facts. According to Charity Navigator’s survey, 93 percent of those surveyed said they gave during the 2010 year-end giving season. Of those who donated in 2010, 91 percent said they planned to give during the same period in 2011.

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Franklin Graham: Is There Hope for Revival?

Published on Wednesday, 28 November 2012 14:00

Written by Franklin Graham

Franklin-Graham-preaching Can revival come to America?

If revival can come to a wicked city like Nineveh in response to the preaching of God’s Word by Jonah, then I believe there is hope for our nation.

The results of the recent election show a definite move toward secularism and a shift away from Christian values and biblical morality. In some states, same-sex marriage was approved and marijuana was legalized. Unbelievably, whether it was apathy or indifference, there were millions of evangelical Christians who stayed at home and did not go to the polls. Had more Christians exercised their right and privilege to vote in this election, perhaps the outcomes on the national and state levels could have been quite different.

However, I believe that followers of Jesus Christ can still make a crucial difference in our country going forward.

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