How people learn is important. How they progress toward belief and action is more important. A white-haired man was introduced to me after preaching. He was starting a church in the next town over, but his comment startled me. “Mark, I appreciated what you said about new believers knowing more lost people. In all my years of ministry, I never thought about training up a new believer to share their faith. And I wanted you to know I’ll be going out with them to share Jesus with their family … [Read more...]
Millennials and evangelism – discipleship using Storying
When I led a Sunday School class for our church’s college students, I was astounded one Sunday when one long-time Christian and faithful attender blurted out, “Just tell us what to believe.” My Baby Boomer generation grew up doubting the Establishment with its political corruption, humiliated tele-evangelists, rampant inflation and unethical business practices. The Baby Boomer mantra was lifted straight from Karl Marx, “Question everything.” This was unique to me. I belonged to a youth … [Read more...]
Learning from 1960s Revival
When Jim Breeden, director of missions, St. Louis Metro Association, gave me a copy of the newly reprinted book Indonesian Revival, by the late Avery Willis, I wasn’t expecting much. But Jim handed me a real gift. Indonesian Revival documented a people movement that occurred in 1966-68 in which two million Javanese came to faith in Christ. It’s not only a good read, but Avery based it on his doctoral dissertation at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The trigger for the revival … [Read more...]
Beating Cancer, staying faithful
Two types of cancer were growing in my body when I was ordained to the gospel ministry back in 1986. That was in March and by May, my oncologist had scheduled me for four week-long courses of chemotherapy over the next four months. God has healed me and I am grateful! The phone call was for me. My doctor’s voice had a sterile chill, “Mr. Snowden, the tests came back. Those nodules in your lungs have metastasized – and it’s spreading fast. You are scheduled to begin your first round of … [Read more...]
What has the Lord sent you to say?
Journalists are notoriously a tough crowd. Some go to prison rather than divulge a source. A few are imprisoned or even shot for being mistaken as spies. They take the heat from important people for holding them accountable. And Christian journalists have no fewer pressures as they work hard to accurately explain how God is at work. You may not be a journalist, but do you have a message of salvation from God? And how will you share it with those who need to hear it? Personal meet-up? Hand … [Read more...]
Evangelizing in their language
Nobody met me at the Mexico City airport. And from what I could tell, nobody was speaking English. I had to reach deep for every syllable I had learned in a Spanish class just to navigate across town. When I later paid the taxi driver in pesos and walked toward my destination the sense of accomplishment was incredible. God had kindly immersed me – sink or swim – in an alien culture. And for a 21-year-old at the time, that was a really big deal. What I remember most about my arrival as a … [Read more...]
Try this when you meet someone new
A believer’s life perspective changes when he prioritizes making disciples. He listens to know if the person he meets is lost or saved. If he’s lost, is he in transit or living nearby? If he’s saved, then is he making disciples? If he’s moving on and you probably won’t see him again, then share the full gospel message of salvation. It helps to be sensitive to who the person is, so engaging in attentive listening is required. You might ask about their religious background, culture, … [Read more...]
Become agents of spiritual transformation
Lawrence led a man on the street to Jesus as part of Crossover prior to the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Indianapolis. The man immediately asked, “May I go tell my sister?” Lawrence agreed and soon watched as the man brought his sister out of an apartment building. After Lawrence led her to faith in Christ she admitted, “The second floor of that apartment is a brothel, but I’ll go tell them.” Lawrence pointed to the Baptist church, which was just across the street. The … [Read more...]
Do no harm among people in need, part one
A science fiction story once described an astronaut-type volunteer who was able to step into an alternate universe. As a reminder of home, his wife at the last moment handed him their baby’s rattle. In this world, the sound it made was cute and harmless. However, when the rattle was shaken in that other world, the sound waves knocked people down, broke windows, and unleashed a number of other fantastic problems. The traveler with the toy escaped unharmed. He was heralded for his bravery … [Read more...]
Sowing God’s Word transforms our communities
Missouri Baptists are being challenged to distribute God’s Word this year as they engage the lost in servant evangelism projects. Light Up Missouri is GPS+One Million Bibles. The purpose of this two-year phase is to transform communities with God’s Word through servant evangelism. This is being done in days, seasons and moments of service. Last year about 35 churches, associations and ministries were recruited to engage in distributing nearly 47,000 “Find it Here” New Testaments (NT). … [Read more...]
There is plenty you can do with 48 Bibles
Missouri Baptists are catching the vision for distributing one million Bibles in 2014. There are 48 Bibles in a case. The Find it Here New Testaments (NT) cost less than $40 a case. We are all challenged to distribute one million Bibles in print, audio, or Bible storying. Here are some ideas gleaned from reports that have been coming in from around our state. Get started by April 12 and celebrate this Easter. • Christmas carol through your community and give away a dozen cookies in a … [Read more...]
Missouri churches must grow their own leaders
Imagine a church with 11,000 members, 100 ministers, and only two of them have been to Bible college. Real Life Ministries in Post Falls, Idaho, disciples their members so intentionally, that they have all the ministers that they need. Gene Jacobs is one such church member turned minister. He is a former Navy guy who built cell phone towers. After accepting Christ, he became a member of a small group, then a small group leader, then a community pastor, executive church staff, and is now … [Read more...]