overwhelming power of prayer!

The Harvest is Plentiful; The Laborers Are Few

I am staggered that week after week God's Holy Spirit continues to pour out his presence on us in such tangible ways as we carry the gospel to northern Minneapolis.  Jesus himself focused often on preaching the gospel to those who had the least and therefore recognized their need for him the most.  I suppose then that it makes sense that as we brought the gospel to this most impoverished area of the different places we have preached so far, that I felt Jesus' presence most clearly and joyfully.  

Our methods of conveying the good news have evolved over the last several months.  As we began, our tendency was to bring gospel literature and ask people about their spiritual beliefs.  We continue to use these good methods and have now added to that offering food, clothing, and other necessities (supplied by ICCM) and boldly inviting people to receive prayer from us.  I have observed that offering prayer has been very effective in persuading some people who were otherwise uninterested in speaking with us to open up and share in a gospel-centered conversation.  I have also seen it encourage many Christians we have encountered.  Also, what a blessing it is to be able to confront some of the highly difficult circumstances some people are faced with with the overwhelming power of prayer!

Even in my first conversation on Friday evening, I was amazed by the unlikelihood of what unfolded.  I asked a young man with a baby in a stroller if he knew Jesus.  He responded by saying that he had just become a Christian the morning before, and the reason that he became a believer was because he heard God speak to him-- after he had been asking God to speak with him for the last year.  I prayed with this young man, encouraged him, and invited him to attend our Bible study.  He said that he wanted to come and he gave me his phone number.  I called and invited him this week, but he did not make it.  Please be praying that Kwame would come to our Bible study next week or that he would get plugged into a church, and that most of all that his faith would remain alive and well.  

The night progressed with many more fruitful interactions filled with prayer and the sharing of the word of God.  We encountered several believers who appreciated the encouragement, and we also came across several people who did not believe in Jesus and benefited from hearing the truth proclaimed to them.  Another young man I met, Milion, wanted my phone number because he wanted to invite me to come and hear some new music he produced.  Please also pray that he would contact me so that I and some of my brothers could go and listen, and invite him to believe in Jesus as well.  

Although our numbers are strong, there is always more room for more laborers.  Jesus spoke truthfully when he said that the harvest is plentiful  but the laborers are few.  There are many more people's souls who are imprisoned in sin and need to hear about the liberation that is found in Jesus.  Our mission is urgent because the return of our Lord draws closer each day.  We are praying that the Lord will send more laborers into his harvest.  I urge you to listen carefully for God's nudging to join us-- or that you would simply take a leap of faith and come along side us.  In doing so, you will lift higher the name of Jesus and experience new heights of joy in your relationship with him.  If you walk along side him on nights like these, you will find that he walks more closely to you throughout the other days in between.

In Christ,

Ross  

Another Holy Spirit led evening with the Jesus Freaks.

First above all else, all honor and praise to God our Father through Jesus Christ who lives and unifies each of us in one body.  Friday night we met up with the Jesus Freaks in North Minneapolis, after joining in one voice of prayer asking for the Holy Spirit’s guidance, I had the privilege of partnering up with Al and Kyle.  We made a house call to visit Greg and his family.  We brought quilts, hotdogs, chips, crackers, but above all else the love of Christ. 

A couple of months ago, We felt the Spirit leading us a block or two off of the beaten path to reach out to a family we saw.  Greg, was less than welcoming at first, but we had a burden for his 6 kids and felt we had to try.  The Lord opened the door by the end of the first night, and we have been able to go back and visit several times. 

Greg was raised by his Grandma and who took him to Church every Sunday, but when she died, violence consumed his life and everyone around him.  He turned to what he felt was the only way to survive and began gangbanging.  He makes attempts from time to time to get away, but feels like every time he makes one step in the right direction, something terrible happens that brings him right back;  from burying 4 of his brothers/friends/cousins in one month to violence, to having his sister and cousin shot in a drive-by just a couple of weeks ago, to robberies and beatings, the list goes on. To see the children so young and being brought up seeing that lifestyle is heart wrenching, and burdensome for us as well as Greg…but there is good news! The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.. 2 Peter 3:9 Hallelujah! Praise be to God, whose mercies endure for ever!

                God is reaching out to Greg and his family, and using every willing part of the body of Christ to do so.  It was apparent that the spirit of God went before us and prepared the way.  This was so exciting to see, from a sister of Greg’s giving him a Bible when he left Chicago, to his brother who was visiting that night who began to quote scripture, reinforcing the message that we were there sharing, to Al, Kyle and myself being welcomed with open arms and being filled with Christ’s love and scripture that flowed seamlessly through no effort or skill of our own.  The Spirit led the conversation, the scripture, the prayer, and we were each humbled to be used, and see our God in action!  We ended our time with a couple of rounds of prayers over Greg, his brother, wife and kids,  that was accepted and needed in order to cover every member of his family. 

So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. 1 Corinthians 3:7 I am so glad God’s will is not dependent on my abilities, and that He only required our obedience to show up and hand the steering wheel over to Him Friday night.  Walking away that night with my brother’s in Christ, and as I write this now, my eyes began to water as I am over-filled with compassion and the love of Christ, for Greg and his family.  Jesus loves them so much and wants them to spend eternity in Heaven with Him and so do I.

Question:

"What is a Jesus freak?"

Answer: The phrase “Jesus freak” was originally used to demean/insult Christians involved with the Jesus Movement in the 1960s and 1970s. It was primarily directed towards “Bible thumpers” and those who were especially aggressive in their evangelistic efforts. The core meaning of Jesus freak was a person who was so dedicated to following Jesus that there was nothing else the person could talk about. A Jesus freak is basically a person who is obsessed with Jesus.

While it was originally used as a pejorative, Jesus freak has become accepted and even embraced by many in the Christian community. A “Jesus Freak” song and album by the Christian band DC Talk in 1995 helped popularize the term. This is perhaps similar to the term “Christian,” which seemingly originated as an insult (Acts 11:26), but later became the most widely accepted term for a follower of Jesus Christ. If obsession with Jesus is indeed the core meaning of Jesus freak, then yes, a Jesus freak is precisely what a Christian should strive to be (Matthew 16:24).

In the Jesus Freak song, there is a contrast between how the world views a Jesus freak and what the Bible would declare to be a Jesus freak. First, a man with “Jesus saves” tattooed on his belly is standing on a box in the middle of a city, claiming that he had a dream. That is perhaps how the world thinks of as a Jesus freak. Contrasted with that is the example of John the Baptist. While the world thought he was crazy, he demonstrated the ultimate commitment to Jesus by dying for refusing to be silent: “the king took the head of this Jesus freak” (Matthew 14:10). That should be the definition of a Jesus freak. We should be so radically committed to Jesus that we would rather lay down our lives than deny Him.