[YEAR OF NEW SONG rah What is Missionary Sen 9 R. Stanley 8: The widespread awareness of missionary work is a sure sign of the endtime. The Holy Spiit is stirring up the Church for an all-out involvement in the task of worlwide evangelisation, India the second largest populated nation has witnessed the mushrooming of hundreds of indigenous missions in the last three or four decades of the 20th, century. Christians of both mainline Churches and independent assemblies are showing a keen interest in reaching the unreached for Christ. Missionary sending services have become commonplace. But a fulkorbed understanding of what missionary sending involves is sadly lacking. This article aims to teach Christians their mutifaceted responsibilty in sending forth missionaries. There are atleast five groups of actors in the missionary drama, Missionary Paul lists them for us in Romans 10:12-15. They are Senders, Preachers, Hearers, Believers and Worshippers. Obviously the senders appear on the scene first, and nothing happens until they start acting! Sending forth missionaries is fundamental in missionary work. The act of sending involves atleast five activities J. It’s PRAYING for missionary work. The "Pray therefore" of Jesus preceded His "Go therefore!" (Mt 937,38; 28:18-20). Jesus called for prayer before He chose the twelve disciples to be sent forth (10:1). Missionary work that is not born and bathed in prayer will not ft into God’s purposes. The task is ever much greater than the task force. There has never been a time in the history of the Church when there had been enough harvesters for the harvest (9:37). It will be so till the end. Here is where the supernatural enablement of God is absolutely necessary. The power of God is released in proportion to prayer, Le., how desperately we ery to Him, More prayer means more power; less prayer means less power, and no prayer means no power. Apostle Paul was successful in missionary work because he put prayer above and before anything else. He exhorted God’s people to "frst of all” pray for all men and thank God for them (1 Tim 2:1). Christians lose interest in missionary praying because of lack of fuel for the prayer altar. Besides the special needs which would be presented by missionary agencies from time to time, there are certain items which must find a regular place in praying for missionary work. ‘* Pray for boldness for those who have gone forth to proclaim the gospel. Even a daring apostle like Paulpleaded with believers to pray for his boldness. "Pray for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel (Eph 6:19,20), ‘© Pray that God may open the hearts of the hearers. It was the "Lord" who opened the heart of Lydia to listen to and to accept an open-air message (Acts 16:14). Satan has blinded the minds of people lest the light of the gospel shines on them, Only God can command light on people to dispel darkness (2 Cor 43- 6). © Pray for the opposers. They are simply instruments in the hands of the arch enemy of God and man. It pleases God to work mighty signs and wonders when persecution is severe. His supematural power silences the opponents (Acts 4:16,29,30), * Pray for the new believers. It's so encouraging to know that Jesus has akeady prayed for all our missionary fiuts. In His High Priestly prayer He said, "Father... I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word" (Jn 17:20), ‘© Pray for the well-being of the missionaries. They must be mentally sound, physically healthy, spiritually strong, economically stable and socially pleasant. Prevention is better than cure. Pray that the missionaries may be kept fiom defilement, diseases, depressions, divisions and dangers. Pray as inspired. Suddenly the Holy Spirit may burden you to pray for a particular worker or a mission field. May be there is a problem over there. There have been simply too many testimonies attesting this fact. Pray as informed. Periodicals and prayer circulars from missionary organisations, and newspapers. give us enough of prayer material, Operation World by Patrick Johnstone is an excellent prayer guide to pray for every nation on a daily basis. Pray as imagined. There can be hundred and one things we can think of concerning the problems, challenges and needs of frontline evangelism. Turn imaginations to intercessions. 2, It’s GIVING to missionary work. ‘The Christian ministry can be broadly divided into two categories: (a) Planting of Churches and (b) Perfecting of Churches. Paul plants and Apollos waters (1. Cor 3:5,6). Using the allegories employed by Jesus, those who plant churches are fishermen and those involved in perfecting the churches are shepherds. Of the five main ministers of the Church listed in Ephesians 4:11, apostles and evangelists are primarily church planters, whereas prophets, shepherds and teachers are essentially church perfecters. In another figure of speech, the first group is quarriers and the second sculptors. One leads to the other. They are not independent of each other but interdependent. As ministers empowered by the risen Lord they are to complement each other (1 Cor 3:5,6). In Cristian work there’s nothing called non-church ministries. Because the Church is a group with no saints outside and no sinners inside, ministries by God’s people under any banner are part and parcel of the Church, Some are local ministries whereas others are translocal. The Body of Christ has a local expression as well as an universal expression. This understanding will dispel suspicions and develop profitable relationships between divergent ministries. Whatever money you set aside for the Lord’s work may be shared between the two categories of ministries exphined above. You will then participate both in reaching the unreached and in teaching the reached. Missionary giving must be systematic and sacrificial. 4) Give systematically. Missionary organisations have regular financial commitments. To name a few: salary for the missionaries, educational expenses for the missionary kids, house rent, building and vehicle maintenance, outreach expenses, travel, etc. Don’t say, "I will contribute whenever I feel like!" Will you accept a job where the employer says so?Make a pledge to contribute a definite sum each month, Budgeting then becomes easier for the mission leaders when they sit for annual planning. ‘Missionary organisations have various schemes you can choose from according to your taste and ability. You can partially or filly sponsor a missionary. You can adopt a mission field and underwrite its expenses. You can donate a lumpsum for the construction of a church building or missionary quarters. You can pay for a ‘twowheeler or a fourwheeler. Or, you can make an endowment of one or two lakhs of rupees or more with which the missionary society may make a fixed deposit so the periodic interest can take care of a worker's salary. How many likhs of rupees parents pay as capitation fee to secure seats for their children in professional colleges! b) Give sacrificially. Christian growth means growing in the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Giving is one of the graces. Apostle Paul urged the Corinthian Christians, "As you abound in everything— see that you abound in this grace also" (2 Cor 8:7). The context of this verse is Chistian giving. We must keep on increasing our giving until it affects us. The Old Testament practice of tithing is only a minimum, It’s a place to start, not to stay, Foregoing a legitimate pleasure and tuming that money over to missionary work brings boundless joy. No sacrifice is too great before that of Christ on Calvary. Sacrificial giving ascends as a sweet-smelling aroma before God. The world cannot be evangelize in any generation if God's people won't give more than a tenth of their income to His work. When Mary poured the costly perfume on Jesus the entire house was filed with its fiagrance. Jesus instantly visualized worldwide evangelisation in that sacrificial act (Mk 1429). The gospel of Christ is the message of the unique sacrifice in history. A spirit of sacrifice is inevitable to proclaim it. Ifthis year you don't give to Missions more than what you gave last year, it could mean that you do not vote for an anrival nicrement to the salary of missionaries or that you do not want them to expand their work. Think! 3. It’s REFRESHING the Missionaries. Missionaries are not angels. They are not super-human, They are ordinary men and women called to extraordinary tasks. It’s a known fact that most of the brightest and smartest of Christian workers stay back to work among Christians and don’t go to virgin soils for pioneer missionary evangelism. Missionary work is a frontline battle. As such the missionaries need special care and support. Most of them live in hostile atmosphere. They are away from their kith and kin, living in a totally different culture. Except perhaps with his coworker, the missionary cannot speak in his mother tongue. What a strain! He feels like Abraham in Kiriath-arba, "I am a stranger in a foreign land” (Gen 23:4). Jesus had known that the disciples He sent forth to preach the gospel would be subjected to all sorts of worries, tensions and exhaustion. That was why at the conclusion of His commissioning address He said, "He who receives you receives Me... Whoever gives to one of the least of My followers even a cup of cold water, he will surely be rewarded” (Mt 10:40,42). Let me suggest here certain practical ways of refreshing the missionaries — 4) Medical help Overwork, non-availability of balanced food, poor sanitation, extreme climatic conditions, and such factors affect the health of many ffontline missionaries. Poor medical facilities worsen the situation, Missionary organisations with their limited funds are unable to take care of all the medical expenses of their staff, especially for major surgeries and specialised treatment. Follow such needs as and when they are presented in mission periodicals and make special contributions as if you are spending for one of your own family members. Thank God for Missionaries Upholders Trust (MUT), a ministry dedicated to assist missionary agencies in taking care of the special needs of their workers. (Contact address: Mr. J. J. Ratnakumar, MUT, 2/9 J-1 Barathidason Street, Kamalakshipuram, Vellore 632 002. Tel: 0416-265 187) b) Children’s expensesParents know how dificult itis these days even to take care of the basic needs of children. With a missionary salary i becomes all the more diffe Good education an expensive affir. Moreover mst ofthe mission fields don’t have good schools or colleges. The missionary kids have no option other than staying in hostels elsewhere. Very few sponsoring churches or groups think about this huge need of missionary parents, When the children are well taken care of, the missionaries are at peace and can have a better concentration in the work. 6) Clothes, gadgets, etc. Jesus encouraged His disciples saying, "Do not worry about your body, what you will wear... Do not carry an extra coat... Because the labourer is worthy of his wages" (Mt 625; 10:10; Lk 10:7). This simply means’ that those who send the missionaries and those who are blessed thro’ them are ed to take care of their clothing requirements. Missionaries must be well dressed. They are the King’s messengers. I am not talking about extravagance but elegance. We in the Blessing Youth Mission provide blankets, sleeping bags and warm clothes because missionaries cannot buy these with their regular salary, We encourage supporters to bless the missionaries with water filters, mixer-grinders, cookers, ete. d) Vacation and rest Not many missionaries have relatives who will host them happily for weeks or months when they come on vacation, Write to mission agencies and offer to host such needy missionary families. It will be an excellent opportunity for all your family members to get to know the field situations and be challenged by the faith life of the missionaries in adverse circumstances, Missionary Paul was glad about Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus who "reffeshed” his spirit (I Cor 16:17,18). He appreciated the family of Onesiphorous who "offen refreshed” him when he was in chains (2 Tim 1:16-18). He wrote to Philemon, "Prepare a guest room for me" (Phile 22). We have built a few Missionaries Rest Houses for weary missionaries 10 "come apart and rest a while" (Mk 631). Stretch your imagination to find ways by which you can refresh the missionaries. Apostle John wrote to one Gaius conceming missionaries, "If you send them forward on their joumey in a manner worthy of God, you will do well, because they went forth for Christ’s name, taking nothing ffom non-christians" (3 Jn 6,7), 4, It’s ENCOURAGING the work. One of the major problems of the missionaries is loneliness, Those who labour in virgin soils and remote villages have very litle fellowship. We cannot expect the new field believers to give the missionary the kind of fellowship he needs. Periodical visits of members of supporting churches and groups to the mission fields will boost the missionary’s spirit. The field visits of supporters encourage the new congregations as well. The field believers are made to realise that they are part of a larger body. Unlike in Christian communities, those who embrace the gospel from idol worshipping or animistic culture face stiff opposition from their relatives and neighbours. They pay a heavy price for their faith, When we visit their homes and fields, make personal enquiries of their lifestyle and culture, eat and worship with them, they are brightened up. Missionaries testify that such visits are a shot in the arm for their work. Jesus did not sit back after sending forth His disciples. Historian Luke records, "The Lord chose seventy other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and villages He planned to visit" (Lk 10:1), Are not our children excited and encouraged when we attend their school functions? Personal visit to mission fields is a practical expression of wholehearted involvement in the work. While the missionaries and new congregations are encouraged by our visits, we are challenged as well. There’s nothing like seeing. Our prayers will become better focussed and more meaningful. The government and many companies give leave travel concession (LTO) to their staff and their families. Why not use them to visit distant mission fields? I urge Indians working abroad to include in their itinerary a visit to one of the mission fields when they come down for vacation. Sadly most of them visit only independent evangelists in cities to get some more blessing prayers! Think seriously and see which is more important. The heart of the Good Shepherd is after the shepherdless multitudes (Mt 9:36-38). Join Him in His search operation,5. It’s INVOLVING in personal evangelism. "Go or Send", is a missionary slogan coined by Canada’s sionary statesman Dr. Oswald J. Smith (1890-1986) in order to motivate Westem youngsters to actively involve in reaching the third world with the gospel. But as far as India is concemed, and that in times like these, this slogan is a hoary we cannot afford. We have no choice between going and sending. Every Christian must go wherever he can go and he must help sending others wherever he cannot go. "Go and Send", should be our slogan which incidentally is much closer to the Scriptures. Jesus sent His disciples into the harvest field and He also went, The same was the case with Paul. Frontier missions is actually an extension of neighbourhood evangelism, This is best illisrated by the four ever- widening circles drawn by the Resurrected Lord just before His ascension (Acts 1:8). Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the whole world! It is not one after the other but each alongside the other. Missionary supporters must be personal soulwinners. It will be a tragedy if supporters in the church outnumber souhviners. Pillars are necessary but imagine a hall filed with pillars! Mission leaders are at times over- enthusiastic in raising supporters that they overlook their responsiblity in challenging the congregations and channeling them into neighbourhood evangelism. Here lies one main reason why we don’t get sufiicient quality candidates from churches for fultime missionary work. The local church must be a training ground whereftom soldiers can be released for the frontline, Paul and Bamabas were the first batch of cross-cultural missionaries of the early church and they started off from a local church (Acts 13:1-4) If missions supporters are not soulwinners themselves, they will lose their vision and passion in course of time. The excitement of fishing and the joy of harvest will only keep them aflame. Otherwise mobilisation of support for missionary work will become like another secular business. Only soulwinners can understand the struggles of soulwinners. Whether itis soulwining in the neighbourhood or in the ffontiers, i isa spiritual battle of liberating captives ffom the strongholds of Satan. Missionary Evangelist T.L. Osbom wrote, "A revival that propels every Cristian into personal soubwinning will be the ultimate restoration of New Testament Christianity!" To summarize, Missionary Sending involves praying for the work and the workers, giving liberally, refreshing the missionaries, encouraging the work and new believers by visits, and involving personaly in neighbourhood evangelism. If these things are faithfully done, the senders will be rewarded exactly like the goers! (1 Sam 25: 30:24; 3 Jn 8). Styles of Evan; ngelism “Mark Mittelber One ofthe greatest barriers to Christians participating in personal evangelism is their misunderstanding of what it entails, So many of us are fearful of the word "evangelism" and view it as an unnatural activity. ‘Well, here’s great news that’s both freeing and empowering: God knew what He was doing when He made you. He custom-designed you with your unique combination of personality, temperament, talents, and background, and He wants to use you to reach others in a fashion that fits your design. ‘What might that look like in your life? For an answer, let's consider how God used six people in the New Testament to spread His love and truth. In the process, we'll discover six Biblical styles of evangelism. As I describe cach one, think about whether it might fit you. 1. Peter’s Confrontational Approach Peter had a "ready-shoot-aim" personality. Whatever he did, he did it unhesitantly and with full force. When Jesus asked the disciples in Matthew 16:15 who they thought He was, Peter didn’t mince words; he declared flat-out that Jesus was the Messiah, Then a few verses later when he disagreed with Jesus’ stated mission, hechallenged it head on. Can you imagine that—trying to correct the Son of God? You might, if you have a conffontational style yourself? When Peter was in a boat and wanted to be with Jesus, he didn’t hesitate to do whatever it took to get close to Him, even if it meant swimming to shore or trying to walk on water. And remember when Jesus’ enemies came to get Him in the Garden of Gethsemane? Peter became quite confrontational with a sword in his hand! IfPeter was convinced he was right, there was almost no stopping him, He was direct, he was bold, and he was to the point. Is it any wonder God chose Peter as His spokesman on the Day of Pentecost? God wanted the people to know in no uncertain terms that they'd crucified the Messiah, and that they needed to call on Him for His mercy and forgiveness. Peter’s personality was custom-designed to fil the bill. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, he stood and conffonted the people with the facts. And 3000 people trusted Christ and were baptized that day. Do you realize that there are people in your world who won't come to Christ until someone like Peter holds their feet to the fire? I was one of them, Youssee, fora long time | had played Church and pretended to be a Christian, I'd heard Biblical teaching all my life, knew the gospel message inside and out, and could quote lots of Scripture verses. But I needed a conftontational-style evangelist who could get right in my face about my need to start living out what I knew to be true, And one day God sent one. A fiend I'd known in high school challenged the discrepancy between my beliefS and my lifestyle. Before we parted he looked me in the eye and told me I was a hypocrite! That made me angry. But over the next few days that anger tuned to reflection and later to repentance. The following week I committed my life to Christ. Some people are just waiting—as I was—for a conftontational Christian who'll present the truth of Christ and challenge them to do something about it. Could that Christian be you? 2, Paul’s Intellectual Approach Though Paul certainly could confront when necessary, the hallmark of his approach was a logical presentation of the gospel message. Read any of his letters—Romans being the best example—and you'll see that he was a master at clearly explaining the central truths of the faith. This intellectual approach fit highly educated Paul, with his penchant for debating any and all foes who might challenge his positions. Can you think of a.better person for God to send to the philosophers in Athens? In Acts 17, Paul presented a powerful argument for the truth, starting with the Athenian idol to an unknown God and moving all the way to the only true God and His resurrected Messiah, Paul's approach was effective, and some of his listeners became believers. These thinker types in Athens would not have related well to Peter’s direct, "tum-or-bum" approach. They needed logic that conclusively proved the point. ‘Are there people in your just have to accept it o1 who are like that? They don’t want easy answers or platitudes such as, "You'll " They need to see the solid facts that back up that faith Is the intellectual approach one that fits you? Are you an inguisiti evidence? This is an important style, especially in these days of increasing si hear the gospel not only declared, but akso defined and defended. type who enjoys working with ideas and tization. So many people need to 3. The Blind Man’s Testimonial Approach Though we know less about him than about Peter or Paul, we can be sure of this: The blind man healed by Jesushad seen something worth talking about! (John 9), Blind since birth, he regularly begged fiom people passing by. His routine quickly changed when Jesus came along and gave him the gif of sight. Before he knew i, he found himselfin front of a hostile audience being asked to explain what had happened. Notice the diversity of evangelistic styles. When Peter stood in front of a similar audience, he conffonted them with the truth and told them he would obey God over people. Paul reasoned from the Scriptures with his listeners to show them that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah, But the formerly blind man took neither of these approaches. Instead, he spoke from his experience and confidently declared: "One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!" That's hard to argue with, isn’t it? Notice that in verse 3, Jesus said this man had been born blind "so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." That's an example of what I've been saying—we are customr-tailored for a particular approach. God had been preparing this man all of his li to use his story to point people toward Christ. There are many people around you who need to hear a similar story about how God is working in a believer’s life. They might not respond very well to a challenge or an argument, but a personal account of someone’s coming to faith would influence them powerfully. Could that story be yours? Effective testimonies don’t have to be dramatic. Don’t exclude yourself ftom this approach because you have an ordinary story—ordinary stories relate well o the ordinary people in your neighbourhood and workplace. 4, Matthew's Interpersonal Approach Tax collectors were just not known for becoming evangelists. Yet that’s exactly what happened to Matthew. ‘After accepting Jesus’ call to become one of His followers, Matthew decided to do whatever he could to bring along as many of his friends as possible. In Luke 5:29 we find him putting on a big banquet for his tax-collecting buddies in an effort to expose them to Jesus and the new life He offered, He relied on the relationships he’d built with these men and sought to further shore up their fiiendships. He invited them into his home, He spent time with them and ate with them. He genuinely cared about them and wanted to employ the trust and respect he'd earmed over the years to influence them to consider the claims of Christ. The vantage point of ffiendship gives us the highest possibility of influence in the lives of others. Those who have the interpersonal style of evangelism specialize in this area. They tend to be warm, others-centered individuals who enjoy deep levels of communication and trust with those they're reaching out to Do you enjoy having people into your home, sharing a meal, and spending time in conversation? Many people will never be reached until someone takes the time to build that kind of closeness with them. 5, The Samaritan Woman’s Invitational Approach It didn’t take long for the Samaritan woman to realize that the man she was talking to was no ordinary teacher. His prophetic insights and authoritative answers convinced her of His claim to be the Messiah, So what did she do? She immediately went to her town and brought her fiends to the well to hear Jesus for themselves. This simple invitation resulted in His staying in their town for two days. Many of these men and women became His followers. There are people who would make great strides in their spiritual journey if someone would strategically invite them to a seeker- sensitive church service or outreach event. And a lot of non-Christians are open to this approach.Some people, like the woman at the well, have a knack for getting people to go places with them. Might you be one of them? Have you found that when there’s an outreach event going on your minivan is crowded? Maybe it’s time to trade it in on a maxivan so you can maximize your evangelistic efforts! 6. Doreas’s Service Approach The Bible says in Acts 9:36 that Dorcas was “always doing good and helping the poor." She was well known for her loving acts of service performed in the name of Christ. Specifically, she made robes and articles of clothing for widows and other unfortunate people in her town. She was, in effect, a quiet practitioner of the service-approach to evangelism, It would have been very hard for people to observe her activity and not get a glimpse of the love of Christ that inspired her. In fact, her work was so important that when she died a premature death, God sent Peter to raise her ffom the dead and put her back into service! People who take this approach are motivated to humbly serve others. They notice needs others overlook, and. they find joy in meeting those needs, even if they don't get credit for it, Often more quiet types, these people enjoy expressing compassion through tangible forms of assistance Though this style offen takes longer to produce spiritual results, i's one of the most important of all the evangelistic approaches. That's because service-style evangelists touch people nobody else can reach, Can you see why this style needs to be celebrated? Those neighbours will probably never be famous, but God is using their efforts to populate heaven with people the rest of us would probably never reach. (Contn. Page 9} You might feel you're not a very conta- gious Christian, All you know how to do, after all, is make soup or fix cars. But God can use those things—and so many others like them—to draw people to Himself Being Yourself Nobody perfectly fis into just one of these styles. Every believer probably has a mix of several of them. And you might come up with style number seven or eight! These approaches are presented not to limit you, but to encourage you with the value of diversity on God’s team, You can be yourself So work within your style. Experiment with different approaches. Let God lead you to express your faith naturally to those around you, Team up with other Christians whose styles will complement yours. Take some risks in your relationships and let God work through you. In the process, you'll enjoy the thrling adventure of personal evangelism, and you'll make an eternal difference in the lives of people you love. (From the Book Becoming a Comgious Chistian) top Revival in a Bone Yard Leonard Revenhill (1907-1994) "The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was fill of bones... and, behold, there were very many... and lo, they were dry... And He said to Prophesy upon these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord... So I prophesied as I was commanded... and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their fect, an exceeding great army" (Ezekiel 37). Does history, sacred or profane, offer a more ridiculous picture than this? Here is hop. Whoever had such a dumb audience? Preachers deal with possibilities, prophets with impossbbilitis. Isaiah had seen this nation full of wounds and puttifying sores; but disease had galloped on to death, death to disintegration, and now these disjointed bones spell out despair. Written over the whole situation in large capitals is LM-P-0-S-S-EB-LL-LTY. Now obviously no faith is required to do the possible; actually only a morsel of this atom-powered stuff is needed to do the impossible, for a piece as large as a mustard seed will do more than we have ever dreamed of. Again and again God asks men to do not what they can, but what they can’t, To prove that no sleight of hand does it but that they link their importance to His ormipotence, the word impossible is dropped from their vocabularies. Prophets are lone men: they walk alone, and God makes them alone. For them there is no mold; their patent rights are with God, for the principle of divine selection is "past finding out." But let no man despair; let none of us say, however we may have been or have not been used, that we are too old, Moses was eighty when he took command of an enslaved and broken people. After George Muller was seventy, he went around the world several times, and without the aid of radio, preached to millions of people As for Ezekiel, he called no committee and sent out no prayer letter; he solicited no fimds and loathed publicity. But this situation was a matter of Life and Death. (So is evangelism today—therefore, let every preacher beware lest his "theological-juggling” act send his hearer home saying, "He is a clever fellow!" and yet leave him in complete spiritual darkness.) To this mountain of bones, then, Ezekiel was asked to say, "Be removed!" So he said and so it was. Here was a curse—had he a cure? Here was death—could he bring life? This was no pretty declaration of doctrine. Dear believers, listen. The world is not waiting for a new definition of the Gospel, but for a new demonstration of the power of the Gospel. In these days of acute political helplessness, moral lawlessness, and spiritual hopelessness, where are the men, not of doctrine but of faith? No faith is required to curse the darkness or give staggering statistical evidence that the dikes are down and a tidal wave of hellish impurity has submerged this generation, Doctrine?—We have enough and to spare, while a sick, sad, sin-sodden, sex- soaked world perishes with hunger. At this grim hour, the world sleeps in the darkness, and the Church sleeps in the light; so Christ is "wounded in the house of His friends.” The limping Church militant is deresively called the Church impotent. Yearly we use mountains of paper and rivers of ink reprinting dead men’s brains, while the living Holy Ghost is seeking for men to trample under foot their own learning, deflate their inflated ego, and confess that with all their seeing they are blind. Such men, at the price of brokenness and strong crying and tears, seek that they may be anointed with divine eyesalve, bought at the price of honest acknowledgment of poverty of soul, Years ago a minister put this sign outside of his Church: "This Church will have either a revival or a fimeral!" With such despair God is well pleased, though hell is despondent. Madness, you say? Exactly! A sober Church never does any good. At this ‘hour we need men drunk with the Holy Ghost. Has God excelled Himself? Were Wesley, Whitefield, Finney, Hudson Taylor special editions of ministers? Never! If I read the Book of Acts aright, they were just the norm. The atom bomb seems to have disturbed everything except the Church. By overstating the sovereignty of God and blundering on in an atmosphere of stagnant dispensationalism, we safeguard our spiritual bankruptcy. All the while hell fils. With Communism in the work, Modemism in the Churches, and Moderatism crippling the fundamentalist groups, will the Lord look in vain for a man to stand in the gap, as Ezekiel did’? My preacher brethren, these days we are more fond of travelling than travailing, henee—no births. God send us, and that right early, a prophet out of step with a Church which is out of joint The hour is too late for another denomination to be born, Right now, God is preparing His Eljahs for the last great earthly offensive against militant godlessness (whether political or wearing a mask of religion). The last great outpouring of revival, Holy Ghost bom and operated, will be new wine, bursting the skins of dried-up sectarianism. Hallelujah! Note that Ezekiel was Spirit-led. As a man, he must have shuddered at the appaling sight of mountains of dry human bones. But pivoted on Ezekiel’s faith was the destiny of thousands, ifnot millns—pivoted on faith, mark you, not prayer. Many pray, but few have faith, What holy tremors must have rushed through his soul at this Sight! Only heaven and hell were spectators. Surely if Ezekiel were living today, he would have had a press photograph of this! Next, with a love of statistics, he would have counted the bones; when things had begun to move, he certainly would have called others to see him operate (lest men fail to give him the right ranking with national evangelists!) Not so Ezekiel. Listen to this: "I prophesied as I was commanded" (there is the crux of the matter—he was a fool for God). "O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord." Madness? Yes, insanity—of virgin purity! He said to the bones, "Hear!" though they had no ears! Ezekiel did as he was told. To save our faces, we of course modify God’s commands, and so lose our faces. But Ezekiel obeyed; and God, as always,operated: "there was a great noise.” Well—that would suit us. But Ezekiel did not mistake commotion for creation, nor action for unction, nor rattle for revival. With only one breath from His omnipotent lips, God could have raised this heap to life, but no—there were to be many operations. First, "Bones came together, bone to his bone." (No mountain of bones now.) Such phenomena would almost put us into hysterics; not so Ezekiel. But what good are skeletons? Can these fight the battle of the Lord? At this stage would they bring honour to His Name? Too often today blind guides count "skeletons" who come to the altars moved certainly, but not yet born. At their few, hot tears we exhort, "Believe this promise." But as yet they have no life. Even so, flesh must come upon the skeletons; then skin must cover the flesh, And the result is that we have a valley fill of corpses! Any good to God? Not yet. They have eyes but cannot see, hands but cannot fight, fect but cannot walk, So are those who are secking—uniil this last thing happens. "I prophesied again." Ezekiel held on; he resisted doubt. Instead of being discouraged both at the skeletons and at the corpses, he took it that God was with him Alone with God—he prevailed. "He prophesied as commanded and the breath came into them and they L--V-E-D!" But who today can say, "I prophesied as I was commanded, and they L-I-V-E-D?" We boys can get crowds. Our slick advertising, artistry and strutting—our radio, television, music, build up, and what have you— see to that. Why brethren, we don’t even know whether or not God has commanded us to enter the ministry? Have we a pain in our hearts for perishing men? Does the toll of eightyfive people dying without Christ every minute tum our moisture into drought, take away our garment of praise, or give us the spirit of heaviness? Can we at this moment look up into the face of the living God (for He is looking down on us) and say, "Woe to me if preach not the Gospet?” Can we actually say, "The Spirit of the Lord God is on me" anointing me to preach? Do we count in hell? I mean, would demons ever say, “Jesus I know, and Pastor—I know!" Or, as we preach, do they say, "But who are you?" One of the most painfil things 1 know is to face up to truth, We are well conditioned to doctrine. Most of us Know what the average preacher will say next. But a razor is blunt, compared to Spirit-edged truth, Ministers, and others in different parts of the world, all seem to have the same note of mouming, because of the ineffectiveness to a lasting degree of modren evangelism (eventhough it be fundamental) —flash-bulb evangelism ‘we might call t—brillant for the moment, but ab! but...! May be we have a breath of lift—of revival—in the Churches, but we are not getting awakenings amongst the godless millions. We do get special busloads, mainly of believers or Church-goers, to our mass evangelistic effort, but we need a General Booth to get to the up-and-outs, as well as to the down-and-outs. The old saints used to sing— Blest are the men of broken heart, Who mourn for sin with inward smart. Herein are three very vital issues: Broken Hearts, Mourning, and Sin. First, "a broken and a contrite heart God will not despise." In fact, God only uses broken things. For example, Jesus took the lad’s bread and broke it then and only then, could it feed the crowd. The alabaster box was broken; only then could its fragrance escape and fill the house—and the world. Jesus said, "This is My body which was broken for you." Ifsuch was the way the Master went, should not the servant tread it stil? For in saving our lives, we not only lose them, but we lose other people’s too. ‘And next, mourning for sin! Jeremiah cried, "Oh that my head were waters," while the Psalmist says, "Rivers run down my eyes continually." Dear brothers, our eyes are dry because our hearts are dry. We live in a day when we can have piety without pity. It is passing strange. When a couple of struggling Salvation Army officers wrote to Willam Booth tellng him they tried every way to get a move and failed, he sent this terse reply, "Try tears!" They did. And they had revival. Bible Schools don’t teach “tears.” They really cannot, of course. This is Spirit-taught, and a preacher, however weighed down with degrees and doctorates, has not gotten far unless he knows soub-bitterness over the sin of this day. A repeated cry of David Livingstone was, "Lord, when will the wounds of this world’s sin be healed?"But are we griefstricken in prayer? Do we soak our pillows, as John Wekh did, in our soul travail? The scholarly Andrew Bonar lay on his bed on a Saturday night in Scotland and as people below tramped the streets from the taverns and shows, he used to call from his tortured heart: "Oh! they perish, they perish!" Alas, brothers, we have not so leamed Christ. Many of us know only a slick, tearless, passionless, soulless round of preaching, which passes for the minister’s office these days. Thirdly, what of sin? "Fools mock at it," says the Book. (Only fools would so do.) The Schooimen of the Church have chssified, "Seven Deadly Sins.” We know, of course that they are wrong, forall sin is deadly. Those seven sins are the womb out of which seventy times seventy million sins have been bom. They are "the seven heads" of one monster, which is devouring this generation at a terrifying rate. We face a pleasure-doped youth, who couldn’t care less about God. Cocksure with a psuedo-intellectualism, and insulated with a cultivated indifference to spiritual things, they also, alas, flaunt the accepted standards of morality. It would be comic, if it were not tragic, to read that a certain film star (who is closely associated with scanty dress) refused to see the premiere of her own picture because she was upset at some of the indecent strips init, (There is a demand for this stuff, hence the supply.) Remember that in Greek mythology, Augeas was king of the Epeians and noted his immense wealth of herds, including twelve white bulls, sacred to Helios. For many years the stable for these bulls remained uncleaned. Then Eurytheus imposed upon Heracles the task of cleaning out all his stalls in one day. This Heracles did by turing loose through them the rivers Alpheus and Peneus, Evensso, to our knees, O Christians! Desist the folly of sprinkling today’s individual and international iniquity with theological rose water! Tum loose against this putrefaction those mighty rivers of weeping, of prayer, and of unetionized preaching until all be cleansed. (From the author's book, why real ais) tp Checkpoints for Godly Decisions Jeanette D. Gardner How can you tell if you're making the right ethical decision? These Scripture guides can help measure your choices. 1. Does it violate Scripture? "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your Word... Ihave hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You" (Psa 119:9- 11). 2. Have I prayed about it? "Don’t worry about anything, instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers" (Phil 4:6). When the king of Israel asked Jehoshaphat to go to battle with him, he told the king, "First seek the counsel of the Lord" (I Ki 225). Good advice for us, too! Who am I trying to please with this decision? "Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am trying to please men? IfT were stil trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ" (Gal 1:10). 4, Will this decision make me more godly? Or more worldly in my focus? "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinfil men, the lust of his eyes and the boasing of what he has and does—comes not fiom the Father, but fiom the world" (1 Jn 2:15-17) 5. Would Jesus do it? "But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do" (1 Pet 1:15). 6. Would I be ashamed for others to know I have done this? "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For itis shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret" (Eph 5:11,12). 7. Am I trusting God? "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In allyour ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight" (Prov 3:5,6). David Willams points Out, "Ultimately, all matters of unethicalness among Christians show a lack of faith and trust that God will provide for them regardless.” "Whoever trusts in his riches will fll, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf" (Prov 11:28) 8. Would I be blameless in the eyes of the law and my employers? "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established" (Rom 13:1). 9. Have I sought trustworthy advice? Do you feel you've lost your spiritual, physical, or emotional equilibrium to be a good judge in your situation? "Where no counsel is, the people fal: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov 11:14), 10. How does this decision affect others? "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you" (Mt 7:12). "Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these litle ones to sin" (Lk 17:1,2). 11. Will I have to stretch the truth or lie to pull this off? A poll reveals that 66 percent of those surveyed believe people frequently lie to get ahead at work. "The Lord detests lying lips, but He delights in men who are truthful” (Prov 12:22). 12. What will be the long-term effects? "II-gotten treasures are of no value, but righteousness delivers from death" (Prov 10:2). 13. How will this affect my witness? "Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God" (1 Pet 2:12). tp "FEED ORISSA" An Update by Dr. Mrs. Lilian Stanley As I sit down to pen a few lines to you, my heart overflows with gratitude towards everyone of your for you fiscal, moral and prayer support. I left for Jeypore, Orissa on 22.701 to participate in our Orissa Staff Retreat, From Jeypore our missionaries Mr. & Mrs. Samal and I left for Bargarh by van, The roads had been badly damaged by the floods. Mr. Chandrasekar Bagh has kindly agreed to receive our relief parcels and keep them til we collet. Any relief material and sample medicines may be sent to: Mr. Biswanath Samal, C/o Mr. Chandrasekar Bagh, Bishal Home Industries, Canal Avenue, Bargath 768 028. Do not send very old clothes or expired medicines From Bargath we reached Diptipur. Diptipur is a Christian village created by early missionaries. Diptipur means ‘Place of Light’, As we set our foot here we pray that our Lord will truly make this place so. There is a 60 bed Christian Hospital with x-ray unt, eye block, special wards, TB wards, operation theatre and an Old Age Home. There is also a Mission School, Girls and Boys Hostels, a Church and a government school. The establishment comes under the Sambalpur Diocese of CNI. Currently the Diocese is going through a financial criss. The hospital which was shut down for 3 yrs was reopened 9 months ago and is functioning in a low profile. Staff are paid half salary and the grade four workers are not receiving any salary. The Old Age Home is not fimetioning. This is a dying hospital with vacant beds and locked wards. There is no money in the hospital and no money in people's hand and so people simply die of diseases without treatment. Mr. & Mrs. Samal have settled down in the farm house belonging to the WUAC. We have started our combing operation in Bargarh District to identify the TB patients and starving people. Too many are too damaged by TB that they are incapacitated for life. Our job will be to identify them early and treat. We have so far brought in 56 to the hospital who are undergoing tests. Some have been started on Ant-tuberculous Treatment (ATT), Becauseof your enthusiastic support we are all out to enroll 100 TB patients. Your reward will be in heaven. Curently there is only one doctor in the hospital who is leaving by the end of August. We urgently need a doctor ifour work is to go on unhindered. Even if you are just an MBBS you can come and help us out. Missionaries will bring the TB patients to you. You will have to do the routine tests, confirm TB and prescribe a fixed regime “Missionaries will follow up. You can take a long leave for one or two months and come. You may contact me at Vellore, 0416-24400 or Rev. C. K. Das at Balangir, 0652-32891 or Mr. J. Shanthakumar at Madurai, 0452- 535636 for further details. A surgeon and a gynoe- cologist are also needed. Surgeons can even visit once in six months and do the cases. Bringing in old people to the Home poses many problems, Some would rather starve and die than eat food cooked by Christians, The desperate ones come, After a week they feel homesick and want to go back home. So that has to wait now. We have a gospel meeting every Saturday for the poor and we send them with 2 kg rice each. This week (August 11) 78 came. Some came walking 15 km. Now the local bus drivers are giving them a fiee lift and are requesting us to change the rice distribution time to their bus time. Isn't that wonderful?! Darkness, depression, doubts, fear of enemies, fear of failure and loneliness assail us. You do not know what your keters do to us. They give us a kiek, pick us up ffom the dust and push us fo go on. Your caring words are like a drink of Boost for us. I thank my husband for allowing me on these long trips and encouraging the work. Do continue to pray for us and write to us your ideas. Thank you so much! top E