LAUNCH CAMP is happening 10-12 Feb.

The theme for campus local and nationally is REVOLUTION. Jesus was the greatest revolutionist of all time with LOVE being the essence of the movement. At this camp we are going to encounter God, we’re trusting Him to burn His vision and passion on our hearts. It’s a time to take action, to GO as God prepares His army to bring in the promised Harvest. Students will discover how they fit into this revolution, receive impartation and encouragement for the year ahead. Our aim is to mobilise leaders that will carry this momentum into every sphere of society!! EVERY ONE IS WELCOME!! Registration closes today!! Contact Juvan for more info (juvan@enstb.co.za)

Simple thought. Every single thing that we have in our life, material, spiritual, financial, time, children etc. Is a gift from God. None of it is ultimately mine. My kids are not mine, my job is not mine, my money is not mine, my time is not mine, my spiritual gifts are not mine.

When I get to heaven I am going to have to take all the things that God has “loaned” me and give them back to him.

My material goods are on loan, my spiritual gifts are on loan, my money is on loan, my time is on loan, my kids are on loan. You get the point. Let’s steward every single gift that God has given us because ultimately, it’s all his. Let’s not be selfish with what we have, its not ours, God loaned it to us.

You better take care of it and steward it well. Or else!

Ross Middleton is the lead pastor of the upcoming church plant in Miami, Florida, South Coast Church.

You can read Ross’ original post here

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Here is what we are planning for Launch week this year

• Saturday 28 January:   Society Fair @ 3^rd floor in the Neelsie

   Come and join us for some fun as we engage the first year. 

• Sunday 29 January:  First Year Service 18h @ Stellenbosch High School.

• Tuesday 31 January:  Fun day on the Rooi Plain

  Come and join between 9h and 15h (look out for our stallietjie)

• Wednesday 1 February:

1. Graceland Community Project 9h – Contact San-Marie (072 904 1987) for more information
2. Treasure Hunt – 13h 3rd floor of the Neelsie

    Join us as we encounter God and take to the streets to share His love

• Thursday 2 February:

1. Devon Valley Community Project 10h – Contact San-Marie (072 904 1987) for more info
2. Prayer walk before Vensters meet at Stellenbosch High School 17h00
3. Vensters

• Launch Camp 10-12 February:

Launch into 2012 and all that God has for you.  Encounter God, meet new people and discover His destiny for your love.

Every year we pray to seek “what the Spirit is saying to the church.” We’re not looking for a new mission, but for His emphasis or His correction for us to respond to and follow. In this 11 minute video message to all our congregations, Wolfi articulates what the pastors sense the Lord is saying, that its a year to FOCUS (On Jesus and the priorities of our mission), and to OVERFLOW BY FAITH…

Watch this, read the vision, and join to RUN with it!

We pray God’s very richest blessing on you in 2012.

Wolfgang Eckleben is the senior pastor of Every Nation Church London. He is married to his wife, Alison, and have two daughters, Amy and Abigail.

You can read Wolfi’s original post here

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We thank you for your continued support and partnership so please watch out for these changes and more next month so you can be equipped further to disciple more people, to encourage more to serve others, and to honor God in everything you do to lead more people to Jesus Christ.

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I’m pretty good at making excuses. Always have been. What about you?

In Luke 14 Jesus tells a story about excuses. Bottom line: Jesus doesn’t really like excuses.

Here’s the parable paraphrased: Rich dude threw a party; really a lavish banquet. Many who were invited made EXCUSES why they couldn’t attend.

[18] “But they all alike began to MAKE EXCUSES. The first said, `I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. PLEASE EXCUSE ME.’ [19] “Another said, `I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. PLEASE EXCUSE ME.’ [20] “Still another said, `I just got married, so I can’t come.’

None of their excuses were accepted; none of ours will ever be accepted either.

[23] “Then the master told his servant, `Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, SO THAT MY HOUSE WILL BE FULL.”

Here’s my summary of the parable:

1. God wants his house (church) full.

2. God wants us to stop making excuses for not being full.

3. God wants us to “GO OUT” so his “house will be full”

What are you waiting for? Time to go and make disciples!

Steve Murrell is the president of the Every Nation Churches and Ministries and the founder of Victory Philippines.

Read Steve’s original post here.

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At our house we have a simple tradition on Christmas day….one person takes the gifts from beneath the tree and puts them in a pile for the others.  Then we open them individually while everyone else watches.

It struck me today, on the start of a brand new year, that in life we also have piles of gifts (abilities, qualities, and talents).  But it’s not enough to have them.  WE HAVE TO OPEN THEM.

For some odd reason I often hold gifts back…

• I seldom use our sterling silverware.  Never mind the awe of even possessing such a treasure (a wedding gift from Ron’s Mom.)  Better keep it in the chest so it won’t tarnish.
• Our best china (the pattern I spent hours choosing because I liked it so much) remains hidden in the cabinet adding zero elegance to our meals.  Love it and hide it?  What a novel idea.
• Clothes & shoes “so gorgeous I have to have them” somewhere in the closet, waiting for who knows when?

Since when does using something now in the moment mean coming up short later?  Where does this scarcity mentality come from?

Worse yet, what about the gifts inside ourselves that matter a whole lot more than possessions, like our personalities and passion, true selves that are meant to be given that the world around us might benefit and grow?

What gifts are you saving for later, keeping them under wraps?

In 2012, I’m pulling out the silver,  using the china, and wearing the dress.

A new year of possibilities is calling out for you too, calling our names, calling for every gift inside to open, blossom, and soar!

2012 here we come…

Lynette Lewis is an inspirational speaker, inspiring men and women for the past 20 years about topics on vision and purpose. She is the author of the book, “Climbing the Ladder in Stilettos” and serves as a Business Consultant to various global clients. She is happily married to her husband, Ron, and a mother to four grown sons.

Click here to read Lynette’s original post.

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My historical hero, Winston Churchill, died on January 24, 1965. Each year during the week before the anniversary of the Great Man’s death, a few of my friends and I read a good book on Churchill, revel in his spirit and usually have a fine meal in his honor. I also like to memorialize him—during this annual time we have humorously begun calling ‘Winstonmas’—by offering selections from my book Never Give In: The Extraordinary Character of Winston Churchill. I think you’ll find liberation from the cult of the contemporary in Churchill’s words and I hope you’ll think on him with gratitude in this week leading up to January 24.

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On Realism: “The truth is incontrovertible. Panic may resent it; ignorance may deride it; malice may destroy it, but there it is.”

As a rule, human beings try to avoid unpleasant truths. We prefer the comfortable to the unsettling. We dislike harsh facts for the same reason we dislike mirrors: they force us to stare our problems in the face. Historians have long known that civilizations in crisis take refuge in myth and fantasy because the sensual, escapist world of imagination promises deliverance from the cold, disturbing world of reality. But the deliverance is never genuine: it is only a temporary distraction, not real hope. Hope springs instead from courageously confronting the truth, no matter how bleak or costly it may be.

In complaining about the age of appeasement, Churchill once said, “No one in great authority had the wit, ascendancy or detachment from public folly to declare these fundamental, brutal facts to the electorate.” This touches one of the distinguishing marks of his style of leadership: he believed in the necessity of squarely facing the most ugly realities. How refreshing this is in our media age when public relations experts are mistaken for leaders and when every unsightly blemish or untidy fact is carefully reworked, re-painted, or retired. Churchill would have none of it: “It is no use dealing with illusions and make-believes. We must look at the facts. The world . . . is too dangerous for anyone to be able to afford to nurse illusions. We must look at realities.”

Churchill possessed an almost mystical confidence in knowing the facts and facing them honestly, whatever the offense, as a critical step toward ultimate triumph. In September of 1932, he warned the House of Commons of the Nazi movement and urged honesty in dealing with the public. “I would now say, ‘Tell the truth to the British People.’ They are a tough people, a robust people. They may be a bit offended at the moment, but if you have told them exactly what is going on you have insured yourself against complaints and reproaches which are very unpleasant when they come home on the morrow of some disillusion . . .” Years later, as First Lord of the Admiralty, he told the House of Commons of a major naval defeat and reminded the members, “We do not at all underrate the power and malignity of our enemies. We are prepared to endure tribulation.” And when the defeats continued, his conclusion was near brutal in its frankness: “We shall suffer and we shall suffer continually, but by perseverance, and by taking measure on the largest scale, I feel no doubt that in the end we shall break their hearts.”

This resolve to engage the truth at any price granted Churchill some immensely important insights. As a careful observer who refused to change facts to fit his philosophy or bend reality to his imagination, he acquired shrewd insight into the ways of men and events. While others fashioned fantastic theories to explain what little they understood, Churchill recognized that history does not arrive in neat packages or move in defined channels. Time, chance, human nature,—all play their role. Life is not black and white, events are stubborn and unruly, and men rarely follow precise patterns in their behavior. Understanding this gave Churchill the judgment to fashion policies suited to the fluid and uncertain nature of circumstances.

“The world, nature, human beings, do not move like machines. The edges are never clear-cut, but always frayed. Nature never draws a line without smudging it. Conditions are so variable, episodes so unexpected, experiences so conflicting, that flexibility of judgment and a willingness to assume a somewhat humbler attitude towards external phenomena may well play their part in the equipment of a modern prime minister.”

A “humbler attitude” meant caution in dealing with other human beings: “The high belief in the perfection of man is appropriate in a man of the cloth but not in a prime minister.” It also demanded an unnatural willingness to consider opposing views: “The more knowledge we possess of the opposite point of view the less puzzling it is to know what to do.” It enabled him to coolly calculate risk: “We realize that success cannot be guaranteed. There are no safe battles.” And it made him even more impatient when empty posturing replaced informed action: “Peace will not be preserved by pious sentiments expressed in terms of platitudes or by official grimaces and diplomatic correctitude.” Perhaps above all, it gave him a healthy sense of the absurd in the affairs of men: “The human story does not always unfold like a mathematical calculation on the principle that two and two make four. Sometimes in life they make five or minus three; and sometimes the blackboard topples down in the middle of the sum and leaves the class in disorder and the pedagogue with a black eye.”

Facing ugly truth is not easy. Often the toughest battle a leader will face is the one against his own reticence to see things as they really are. It requires uncommon courage and very few have the character to deal with such stark reality. But when the truth is known, the worst is over and the benefits are a clearer vision and the wisdom of a “humbler attitude,” without which leaders cannot move beyond despair to a brighter day of victory.

Stephen Mansfield is a popular speaker, New York Times best-selling author, leader and advisor whose work is centered on faith, character and leadership in the service of society.

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I hate fasting but, I do it anyway. For as long as I remember I have started my year with a week of prayer, fasting and consecration. Here’s a blog I wrote a few years ago that explains why I fast…

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When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Jesus said that our heavenly Father rewards fasting. Following are seven rewards of fasting:

1. Fasting turns back God’s wrath and judgment.
Moses recorded that God was angry enough to destroy Aaron and the children of Israel because of their gold cow idol (Dt 9:18-20). But, as we know, God’s wrath was turned back after Moses fasted and prayed. There has been much said and written the past few years about God’s wrath and judgment on different nations. I’m convinced that Christians can turn back God’s judgment through fasting and prayer. Of course that will never happen unless God’s people get more concerned about the next generation than their next meal

2. Fasting releases prophetic strategies for victory.
The Moabites, Amonites, and several other hostile nations were arrayed against Israel. (See 2 Chr 20:1-30.) King Jehoshaphat called for a fast. You know you are in a desperate situation when a guy nicknamed J-PHAT calls for a fast. During the fast, a prophetic word was given that laid out God’s strategy for their battle. “No swords. No shields. No spears. Get your tambourines ready, we’re going to war!” I’m sure there were some battle-hardened warriors who thought that word was way off. After all, “We’ve never fought a battle like that before.” As always, God knew best. If we are willing to skip a few meals, we may receive prophetic strategies to influence our cities for God’s glory. They may be new and untried strategies, but if they are from God, we can be confident they will work.

3. Fasting activates people and provision for God’s work.
Nehemiah’s building project was preceded by corporate fasting. Would it have been as successful without the fasting? I don’t think so. In 1984, God opened the door for our fledgling Manila church to have its own (rented) building in Manila’s crowded University-Belt as we fasted and prayed.  Each time our church has expanded to a new building to own or rent, a vital part of our fund-raising strategy has been prayer and fasting.

4. Fasting releases wisdom and favor.
Daniel and his friends went on a partial fast (vegetables and water only). At the end of the fast, they were compared with the rest of the young men of Babylon. The results are recorded in Daniel 1:20. In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. Would you like to be ten times better than your competitors? Just lay off the pizza for a few days and seek God wholeheartedly.

5. Fasting clarifies and redirects callings and ministries.
Paul, Barnabas, and a few other Antioch church leaders were me eting together, and while they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said: set apart for me Barnabas . . . (Acts 13:1-3). While they were fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke. Would He have spoken this new direction even if they had not fasted? Probably. The real question is: Would they have been sensitive enough to hear the Holy Spirit speak if they had not fasted? Maybe. Maybe not. Are you seeking God for a new direction in your life or ministry? Good time to fast.

6. Fasting breaks demonic strongholds.
On one occasion, the disciples unsuccessfully attempted to cast out a demon. When they asked Jesus why they had failed, He responded:  this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting (Matt 17:21). This seems to indicate that there are certain demonic situations that, for one reason or another, can only be defeated through fasting. Isaiah said that true fasting will loose chains . . . untie the cords of yoke . . . set the oppressed free and break every yoke (Is 58:6). Have you ever encountered a stubborn demonic situation? Maybe it’s the kind that only goes out by prayer and fasting.

7. Fasting increases spiritual power.
Luke records that Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit and that He was led by the Spirit. After His forty day fast, He returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit (Lk 4:1,14). How many Christians do you know who are full of the Spirit and led by the Spirit, but do not walk in the power of the Spirit? Need more power? Spiritual power is one of the rewards of fasting.

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This blog was originally an article called “Freedom From the Stomach God” written for Evangelicals Today magazine. I edited it, made it much shorter and posted it here. Hope it helps those who are starting 2008 with a season of fasting and prayer.

Also, I recently wrote several fasting blogs on my “accidental missionary” site. The first was called “I Hate Fasting.”

(Note: We encourage only healthy adults to fast. If you are pregnant or nursing, you should not fast. If you have any medical condition, you should check with your doctor before fasting.)

Steve Murrell is the president of the Every Nation Churches and Ministries and the founder of Victory Philippines.

You can read Steve’s original post here.

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The praying life reveals the heart. When we pray we are being unmasked. We expose what is inside of us. We become vulnerable to God and ourselves. We don’t like it and we are scared but we know we need to do it.

Only in a praying life do we acknowledge that we have a needy heart. As much as we want the world to see how self reliant we are, we really are not. That is why I always say that prayer mirrors the gospel. It shows to us how helpless we are and to admit it is actually healthy and beneficial to us.

When we are weak, God shows Himself strong.  Dependency is the heartbeat of prayer.

The problem is we are trying to be spiritual to get it right. We know we don’t need to clean up our act in order to become a Christian but when it comes to praying we forget that. We like adults, try to fix ourselves up. In contrast, Jesus wants us to come to him like little children, just as we are.

COME MESSY

Come to me all you who have learned how to concentrate in prayer and I will give you rest??? No, it says come to me all of you who are weary and heavy laden. Have you seen a weary and a person carrying a heavy load. Don’t try to get the prayer right; just tell God where you are and what’s on your mind. That’s what little children do. They come as they are, with runny noses and all. Like the disciples they say what is on their mind.

The gospel teaches us that we cannot on our own. That is how we must be when we come to pray.

Dennis Sy is the senior pastor of Victory Greenhills. He’s married to Samantha. They have two beautiful daughters. He is the author of Clueless Church Planter, is a frustrated sociologist, and an aspiring missiologist.

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