If you find
yourself in an anxious season of difficult transition, take comfort from the
life of Isaac.
If you had told
me seven years ago that I would resign my comfortable magazine job in 2010 and
make a shift toward public ministry, I would have asked if you were smoking an
illegal plant. I liked my paycheck and my benefits. And in 2004 I was trying to
figure out how I would put four kids through college when I had no extra money
in the bank.
Fast forward to
2010, to the middle of the Great Recession. They say the economy is showing
signs of improvement, but I don't see this in Florida, where the foreclosure
rate is still one of the nation's highest. Yet right in the middle of these
uncertain economic times, while the unemployment rate is hovering around 10
percent, I sensed God telling me to make a career change. read more
Why did an
innocent statement about protecting unborn life unleash a national uproar?
Today's feminist groups need a reality check.
I'm not sure what
the folks at Planned Parenthood expected football star Tim Tebow to do in his
long-awaited Super Bowl ad on Sunday night. Condemn women to hell if they've
had abortions? Show photos of aborted fetuses? Wave a gun at abortionists?
Tebow is a big
guy, but both of his ads were polite and harmless—maybe even too safe. And the
22-year-old Heisman Trophy winner appeared in the 30-second ads with his mother,
for crying out loud. She was even holding his baby picture!
Why did this ad
cause so much hyperventilation? read more
How
a Pennsylvania pastor led a four-man team into the quake zone in Port-au-Prince
to save a handful of orphans.
Psalm 27 was posted on the orphanage wall.
At
the Rescue Children Orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, a small sign was
hanging on one of the building's concrete walls on Jan. 12, the day the city
was leveled by a devastating earthquake. It was a verse from Psalm 27, written
in English and Creole: "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord
will take care of me."
Those
words have rich meaning today, not only to the 11 children in that orphanage
who survived the quake but to Randy Landis, a charismatic pastor from
Allentown, Pa., who helped lead a dangerous search-and-rescue mission when he
learned about the calamity. He knew the children had survived the quake, but
when phones went dead he had no idea if they had food, water or protection from
falling debris. So Landis and a small team of men from Lifechurch of Allentown
sprang into action. read more
Oral Roberts was not a sophisticated guy. Men of faith rarely are. He was born in poverty, and his early years in ministry were not glamorous. One Pentecostal Holiness preacher who was
alive in the 1930s says he remembers when Oral and Evelyn Roberts tied
everything they owned to the back of their car and moved from Georgia to Oklahoma. They modeled the kind of pioneering faith that requires sacrifice and humility.
It’s intriguing that Oral Roberts died just as we were
about to enter a new decade. His death on December 15 represents the
passing of an era. The pioneers of the charismatic movement are leaving
us. And it causes me to wonder, with some concern, whether we are
equipped with the kind of faith we need in this hour.
Roberts was the quintessential faith
preacher. But during his lifetime, “faith preacher” took on a negative
connotation because of various scandals and excesses in the faith
movement. I loved much of the early faith teaching, but I was turned
off when some of the flashier pulpiteers began to focus so much on
financial prosperity that they became materialistic and manipulative
when taking offerings.
Also, I didn’t buy the so-called “name
it and claim it” philosophy because I don’t believe I should reduce my
relationship with God to a formula. And I was also grieved when
proponents of the faith message started suggesting that we can’t admit
when we’re sick. That is not faith; that’s denial.
Like Kenneth Hagin Sr., Roberts was a
faith preacher who also was troubled by the way the faith movement
morphed into something else during the 1980s and 1990s. I’m sure he
longed for the days when faith was more about conversions and healings
and less about private jets and Rolex watches.
Today’s generation is weary of hype. We
crave genuine faith. Paul told Timothy: “The goal of our instruction is
love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere
faith” (1 Tim. 1:5, NASB, emphasis added). That word “sincere” is
translated “unfeigned” in the King James Version. It means real, pure
and undisguised. It’s not pretend. And it’s not mixed with carnality.
Some of what we called faith in the past
was mixed with greed and selfishness. One slick prosperity preacher
encourages his followers to wear a T-shirt that says: “I WANT MY STUFF.”
That immature attitude is a sick substitute for biblical faith. Real
faith is focused on the kingdom of God, not ourselves. It grows
steadily inside us as we hear the promises of God’s Word and then build
our lives on spiritual reality—while embracing godly character.
I want to be a man of faith, yet too
often doubts and anxieties plague me. So when 2010 began I started
studying the life of Abraham. I’ve been reading and re-reading passages
in Genesis, Romans, Hebrews and Galatians that describe the journey of
the man we call “the father of our faith.” Abraham proved that if we
want to please God we must believe Him—even when the promises seem
impossible.
Oral Roberts used to tell his listeners: “Expect a miracle!” I believe that’s still sound advice for us today. I know Roberts was
not perfect, and he had some regrets about his ministry. Yet he
pioneered Christian broadcasting in the 1950s, built a successful
university and challenged the church to believe in divine healing. That
inspires me to pray big prayers and reach for big goals.
I encourage you to write down every
promise God has given you from Scripture. Whatever challenge you face,
grab hold of His specific word to you. Meditate on it and declare it.
Let your faith grow stronger as you spend intimate time in prayer and
worship.
Perhaps you need a better job, an open
door for ministry or a spiritual turnaround in your church. Or you may
be asking God to restore a broken relationship or bring a prodigal
child back to Him. Don’t let the ravenous birds of doubt and
discouragement steal your promise.
You can expect a miracle. Let a holy
anticipation arise in your heart. We are crossing over into a
significant new era of spiritual renewal. A land of promise awaits us—and we can claim it if we will simply believe.
Lee Grady is editor of Charisma. You can find him on Twitter at leegrady
We've faked the power of Pentecost long enough. Let's set aside the imitations and reclaim the real deal.
Shortly after Elijah was carried to heaven in his fiery chariot, a group of young prophets asked Elisha to go with them to build new living quarters near the Jordan River. While one of the young men was cutting down a tree, the blade of his axe fell in the water and sank into the murky depths of the riverbed (see 2 Kings 6:1-7).
The construction project came to an abrupt stop. This was before the days of flashlights and sonar devices. These guys were in trouble. read more
When the earthquake struck last week, a brave American
woman found supernatural strength to praise the Lord—and to help deliver two
babies.
My friend Linda Graham believes in miracles, but her
faith was stretched beyond her wildest imagination last week when she arrived
in Haiti with three other women from Durham, N. C. They were on a routine
mission to deliver blankets, clothing and medical supplies to an orphanage in
the town of Carrefour.
They had no idea they were walking right into one of the
worst natural disasters in modern history. read more
There's too much awkward silence when it comes to old and
young. It's time to start a conversation.
One of my core passions is training younger Christians.
Whether I'm doing an online Bible study with a friend overseas or taking a
couple of guys with me on a mission trip, relational discipleship has become a
priority now that I'm older. Young leaders need more than stuffy talking heads
who just preach at them from acrylic pulpits; they want approachable mothers
and fathers who will share a meal, listen, ask questions and invite co-equal
participation.
Shyju Matthew is a young leader I met last year in India.
Based in Bangalore, he serves on the staff at Bethel Assembly of God Church.
He's only 24, but Shyju conducts evangelistic events around the globe. He has
exceptional maturity and spiritual anointing. Yet he recognizes his need for
input from the older generation. In fact, he seeks it out. read more
