A Weekly World Wide Word of Encouragement to those in the Ministry
PRAISE GOD IT’S MONDAY!
A WEEKLY ‘WWW (world-wide word) OF ENCOURAGEMENT’
TO THOSE IN MINISTRY
A FREE service, currently connecting with Christian leaders from 3,000 denominations and ministries, in 70 countries.
Issue No: 808 Published: 24 Apr 2017
OUR SOURCE - GOD OR MAN
JESUS TAUGHT THE JEWISH WAY - THROUGH EXAMPLETodays editorial is taken from my book THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW. We must learn that our methods are not the most effective in the growth of disciples. Jesus showed us the way.....
DOCTRINE v EXPERIENTIAL TRUTH
Greek (Western) In Western thought spiritual advancement is understood to be found in theological qualifications.
Becoming the leader (pastor, minister etc.) of a church today generally requires a theological qualification from an institution approved by the church grouping one is involved with. Correct doctrine, learned through theological study, is seen as the way to get closer to God. Unfortunately though, while knowledge about God can be learned, relationship with God has to be experienced and, in reality, is often hindered through the pride that so often accompanies intellectual achievement.
This Greek inspired development is a major challenge to the church today.
Eastern (Hebrew) In Hebrew thought, God has to be experienced through relationship, which then must be reflected in one's life.
Spiritual maturity and growth comes from intimacy with God which results in doing His will in your life, even in seemingly impossible situations. For example, take Elisha and his servant. Elisha had boldness when facing the armies of the king of Aram, while his servant, without Elisha's relationship, was scared stiff! Elisha prayed.....
<>i>16 “Don’t be afraid,†the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.†17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.†Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:16-17)
In the New Testament the same principle applies.....
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. 15All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.†(John 16:13-15)
We must experience and reflect God's love.....
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)
We must experience and reflect God's faith.....
22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant. (Colossians 1:22-3)
We must experience and reflect God's truth as found in the Scriptures.....
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:14-15)
Through being obedient to the will of the Father as related to us by the Holy Spirit we will become sons (genderless) of God.....
13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, 14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, ""Abba," Father." (Romans 8:13-15)
Amen.
SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY
1. We must change emphasis from theological qualifications to personal relationship with Jesus as the way to spiritual maturity.
2. Discipleship must take precedent over sermons.
3. Leadership must be determined by proven spiritual maturity rather than theological, doctrinal knowledge.
4. We must 'walk the walk', not just 'talk the talk'.
Continued next week.
FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUSMay we hear what the Lord is saying to us.
Jesus heals Boy With Evil Spirit and Gives Explanation to Disciples
(Matthew 17:14-21, Mark 9:14-29, Luke 9:37-43)
A boy brought out of the crowd to Jesus by his father.
“You unbelieving people!â€
“How long must I remain here with you? How long do I have to put up with you? Bring him over here to me!â€
“How long has he had this?â€
“Why do you say, ‘if you can?’ “Whoever trusts has every power!â€
“Spirit that causes deafness and dumbness, I order you to come out of him and never return.â€
The disciples asked how he did it, as they had not been able to.
“Because you don’t trust enough,†“I tell you, even if your trust was as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible for you.â€
Jesus Discusses His Death (Matthew 17:22-3, Mark 9:14-29, Luke 9:37-43)
With the Disciples.
“The Son of man is going to be betrayed and people will have power over him. They will kill him, but on the third day he will rise again.â€
Paying the Temple Tax (Matthew 17:24-7)
By Peter, to be paid to the taxman
“What do you think, Simon?â€
Jesus asked him. “Do the kings of this world collect their taxes and duties from their own sons or from others?â€
“In that case the sons are exempt. But to avoid giving offense to anyone, go to the lake, and throw out a fishing line with a hook. Pull in the first fish you catch, and when you open its mouth there you’ll find a stater coin. Take the coin and give it to them for both me and you.â€
You can download the complete 'Words of Jesus' here.
A NOTE ABOUT AFRICA
Kathy and I have finally booked our flights to Kenya, via Britain. We leave New Zealand on 20 June for London, via Dubai. Firstly to spend 10 days there with the newly weds, Nigel and Savi, before all going up to the very North of Scotland in Thurso, to Andrew & Catrionas, Eva, Nathan and Charises home for 10 days also, where I will celebrate(!) my 70th birthday.Going back to London, we catch our flight to Kenya, again via Dubai, arriving in Nairobi on 14 July, to begin our new (ad)venture!
Kathy is shouting one of our New Zealand sons, Cameron, a return trip to Britain, to share in my birthday also.
In the meantime we are continuing our fundraising, in particular the $60,000 needed to build the Eye Clinic/Hospital. You can check out the details HERE
We thank Chuck Graham and excellent publication, the weekly A NOTE OF ENCOURAGEMENT (Registration Recommended) for the publicity he continues to give. Check it out and subscribe HERE
Thank you so much, Chuck and Team for your ongoing support!
We continued our busking this week with the arrival of the last two Cruise Ships of our Summer season. On Easter Monday, a holiday in NZ, a lady drew a watercolor sketch of Warren, Kathy and myself, busking! Wow! She is going back home to do a proper picture, in due course. The sketch is shown! Immediate slimming for me! LOL! World famous in Napier!
Check out our website at.....
***NOW***NINE BOOKS ARE AVAILABLE ON AMAZON!!!
9 BOOKS are now available on Amazon (Kindle)!The final one to be added is THE PURGING OF THE CHURCH. It is based on 11 bullet points David Wilkerson, noted author of 'The Cross and the Switchblade', published about changes needed in the church of today to prepare it for the return of Jesus.
All are available worldwide for electronic download on Amazon (Kindle) for $US0.99c . Unfortunately there has to be charge in order to list.
Your support would be appreciated and they could well change your life!
They are all found at this link.....
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=david+tait+books/
BOOK OF THE WEEK
TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHURCH:CHANGES GOD REQUIRES IN HIS CHURCH TODAY IN ORDER TO PRODUCE THE PERFECTED ‘BRIDE OF CHRIST’
A journey of discovery for those who are dissatisfied with the 'church system' today. If you have a spiritual hunger for more of Jesus, more 'real' interaction with the Holy Spirit and desire to know and live the will of the Father in your life, this is for you. Do you earnestly hunger to enter the 'kingdom of God', the final age that will usher in the return of Jesus? 'TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHURCH' will illuminate the way ahead for you.
Downloadable from Amazon for USD99c at.....
https://www.amazon.com/TRANSFORMATION-CHURCH-CHANGES-REQUIRES-PERFECTED-ebook/dp/B01DBD2SVG/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_8?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=30RVX8VQYP73VHYHSFAV
***DAILY EZINE!*** 'DAVID'S DAILY DOODLINGS' Subscribe Today
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'THE WORDS OF JESUS' REMAIN AVAILABLE FOR PDF DOWNLOAD
Join the many who have downloaded the 'The Words of Jesus'. I am sure you will be blessed by it, as I have been.One key element here is the setting out in chronological order (as far as it is possible to do so) our Lord's words drawn from all the Gospels, and the elimination of repetition between Gospels.
You may be surprised by the different perspective this presentation gives you both in understanding of His life and ministry, and in achieving a closer relationship with Him.
Download the free PDF here.....
DAVID'S DOODLINGS
HEAVENLY TRUTHS GOD HAS SHOWN ME739. - 809. God has shown me that...
... to be effective for Him, the light within, must shine without.
... happiness comes and happiness goes, but joy stands firm.
... we have second chances in life but not in death.
... we only get to live life once.
... my time invariably runs ahead of His time for me.
... to wait is still to grow.
... my job is simply to be available to Him.
... yesterdays faith is to become today's normality.
... exercising my 'will' frequently involves my 'wont'.
... the wall of faith is built one brick at a time.
... to 'overcome' I need to 'undergo' change in my life.
... God is God, is God.
Please feel free to quote these quotes. Acknowledgement of David Tait as the author would be appreciated. There are now over 1300 David sayings for you to view at ...
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
This one you need to think about! So true!Visit the Toon Fever website for more cartoon fun..... http://www.toonfever.com TO READ THIS CARTOON AND SEE THE OTHER PICTURES IN THIS EMAIL YOU NEED TO BE ONLINE.
Check it out at...
TUESDAY TEACHINGS
NEXT WEEK:A REVELATION OF------THE BOOK OF RUTH continuesDiscover the reward for boldness and commitment contained in Chapter 3.
Check out all the available teachings at...
*** ANOTHER DAILY EZINE FROM WWJ!*** 'LAUGHING AT OURSELVES' Subscribe Today
As Christians, if we can't laugh at ourselves, others will! A fun way to start your day. To register today, simply click here lao-on@wwj.org.nz and press send. Then it's done! Should you wish, check out early issues (where you can also subscribe) at...
LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused****** Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others. ***
456. EVERY WORD.
One Sunday morning, after attending church services in Hartford, Connecticut, Mark Twain said to Dr. Doane, the minister: "I enjoyed your services this morning, doctor. I welcomed it like an old friend.
I have, you know, a book at home containing every word of it."
"You have not," said the indignant Dr. Doane. "I have so,"
countered Twain. "Then send it to me. I'd very much like to see it."
"I'll send it," promised Mark and the following day he sent the Reverend Dr. Doane an unabridged dictionary.
455. WHO WAS JESUS?
There were 3 equally good arguments that Jesus was Black:
1. He called everyone "brother"
2. He liked Gospel
3. He couldn't get a fair trial
But then there were 3 equally good arguments that Jesus was Jewish:
1. He went into his father's business
2. He lived at home until he was 33
3. He was sure his mother was a virgin and his mother was sure he was God.
But then there were three equally good arguments that Jesus was Italian:
1. He talked with his hands
2. He had wine with every meal
3. He used olive oil
But then there were three equally good arguments that Jesus was a Californian:
1. He never cut his hair
2. He walked around bare foot all of the time
3. He started a new religion
But then there were three equally good arguments that Jesus was Irish:
1. He never got married
2. He was always telling stories
3. He loved green pastures
But the most compelling evidence of all - 3 proofs that Jesus was a woman:
1. He had to feed a crowd at a moments notice when there was no food
2. He kept trying to get a message across to a bunch of men who just didn't get it
3. Even when he was dead, he had to get up because there was more work for him to do.
"FREE DOWNLOAD: You can now download the book 'Laughing At Ourselves' in PDF format at LAUGHING AT OURSELVES One of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 800 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ...
FACTS FOR FUN
LAST WEEKS QUESTION: How do black and white stripes camouflage zebras?ANSWER: It doesn't seem to make sense. For there isn't any black and white shrubbery in Africa for zebras to hide in! So how does being striped help them to avoid being someone else's dinner? The answer is in what scientists call ‘disruptive coloration’. The alternating stripes break up and obscure the outline of the zebra, making it difficult for predators to focus on the animal, particularly when many zebras are running together at once. Instead of a solid shape, the predator sees a jumble of apparently unrelated forms. Some experts think the stripes may serve another purpose - avoiding the tsetse fly. These biting flies prefer to snack on large, dark, moving animals. The zebra's stripes may well make it difficult for the biting bugs to find a single dark region to alight upon. (What about the ‘Stars and Stripes’?)
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: What is an egg tooth?
SOME FUN FACTS 261. FAST FEATHERS
Badminton is the world's fastest racket sport. A shuttle can leave the racket at a speed of almost 200mph. (320kmh) (Yet stops in less than ten paces. Should drag cars too, be feathered, then?)
262. MORE FILES
It has been known for an expert fly fisherman to have as many as 10,000 flies in his collection. (Using 1 every day of the year it would take over 27 years to use them all!)
263. EARLY AND LATE
A rainbow can be seen only in the morning or late afternoon. It is a phenomenon that can occur only when the sun is 40 degrees or less above the horizon. (Only since Noah’s time. Before that there was no rain. The rainbow was God’s promise to Noah not to allow it to rain everywhere at once, ever again.)
A WORD PUZZLE FOR YOU
Make another word from this word using all the letters.
LINKAGE
Answer at the end of A David Musing
FREE DOWNLOAD: You can download the full version of our Trivia Book at TRULY TRIFFLING TRIVIA
Or view all 1232 online at...
PAUL
1: How many missionary journeys did Paul undertake before his journey to Rome?a. 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4
Source: http://biblequizzes.org.uk
Answer at the end of A DAVID MUSING
IF ONLY I'D THOUGHT OF IT!
"""OTHER'S SAYINGS TO ENLIGHTEN, AMUSE, OR BEMUSE"""MANY MORE MOST INTERESTING THOUGHTS
!!!!!!! People who cough incessantly never seen to go to the doctor, they go to banquets, concerts, and church.
!!!!!! Nobody talks so consistently about God as those who insist that there is no God.
!!!!! The longest word in the English language is the one that follows... "And now a word from our sponsor."
!!!! My doctor is an eye, ear, nose, throat and wallet specialist.
!!! We've just moved into our dream house. It costs twice as much as we ever dreamed it would.
!! Someone who thinks logically provides a nice contrast to the real world.
! Heroes are people who rise to the occasion and slip quietly away." -Tom Brokaw
100'S MORE TO BE FOUND AT...
GREAT GROANERS
122. FLAT-LINEDI work in a busy office where a computer going down causes quite an inconvenience. Recently one of our computers not only crashed, it made a noise that sounded like a heart
monitor. "This computer has flat-lined," a co-worker called out with mock horror.
"Does anyone here know how to do mouse-to-mouse?"
123. TWO BROOMS
Two brooms were hanging in the closet and after a while they got to know each other so well, they decided to get married.
One broom was, of course, the bride broom and the other the groom broom. The bride broom looked very beautiful in her white dress. The groom broom was handsome and suave in his tuxedo. The wedding was lovely.
After the wedding at the wedding dinner, the bride broom leaned over and said to the groom broom "I think I am going to have a little whisk broom!!!"
"IMPOSSIBLE!!" said the groom broom. "We haven't even swept together!"
124. THE ROTTWEILER
A man takes his Rottweiler to the vet. "My dog's cross-eyed, is there anything you can do for him?"
"Well," says the vet, "let's have a look at him."
So he picks the dog up and examines his eyes, then checks his teeth. Finally, he says "I'm going to have to put him down."
"What? Because he's cross-eyed?"
"No, because he's really heavy."
125. WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE
A married man had only one complaint: his wife was always nursing sick birds. One February evening, he came home to find a raven with a splint on its wing sitting in his
favorite chair. On the dining room table, instead of dinner, there was a feverish eagle pecking at an aspirin. In the kitchen, his wife was comforting a shivering little wren
she found out in the snow.
The furious husband strode over to where his wife was toweling down the cold little bird. "I can't take it any more! We've got to get rid of all of these #(@ birds!"
The wife held up her hand and cut him off in mid-sentence. "Please, Dear, no cuss words in front of the chilled wren."
126. I'M SORRY
I was being shown round a cheese factory the other day, when I fell into a giant vat of milk by-product.
"I'm sorry", I said.
"Am I in your whey?"
127. THE KING AND THE ANIMAL LOVER
Once upon a time there was a king named Ed who reigned over a small county in southern Utah. He was a good and wise king, but he had one very bad habit: King Ed just loved animals--all kinds of animals--and he kept bringing them in the castle with him.
He had deer and water buffalo and foxes--all sorts of game in every room of the castle. The people of the kingdom finally got fed up with this stinky situation, and decided that the king must be dethroned and all the game returned to their natural habitat.
It was the first time in history that the reign was called on account of the game.
Groan even more greatly .....
As Thousands Flee South Sudan, Ugandan Refugee Camp Becomes World’s Largest
As soon as you set foot in any of the refugee camps along the South Sudan border in Uganda, a vast human suffering becomes easily apparent. We explored some of the personal stories of people fleeing this young country’s conflict in a story over at Goats and Soda, but it’s hard to express the scale of this conflict, which has killed more than 50,000 people since the end of 2013. What began as a dispute between the president and vice president has turned into a brutal civil war fueled by ethnic tensions.Conflict
The U.N. has been using alarming superlatives to describe it. It has said sexual violence in the conflict has reached “epic proportions,†that the humanitarian needs have reached “unprecedented levels.†Last month, it warned that the conflict in South Sudan has precipitated the “world’s fastest growing†refugee crisis. On Tuesday alone, 3,000 people streamed across the border into Uganda, which already hosts at least 800,000 refugees.
Why The Famine In South Sudan Keeps Getting Worse
In 2014, about a year after civil war broke out in South Sudan, Bidi Bidi was just bush. But by the beginning of this year, the landscape was suddenly cut by a grid of new roads and dotted with new dwellings built by refugees.
Bidi Bidi was opened in August 2016, and by the end of the year, about 260,000 refugees were living there. The camp got so full that Ugandan authorities started opening new camps.
The U.N. refugee agency now says that Bidi Bidi hosts more than 270,000 refugees — making it the world’s largest refugee camp. It is now bigger than Kenya’s Dadaab camp, which has been receiving Somali refugees for more than 20 years.
This brings us to our second graphic: (Not Shown)
What you’re looking at there is a comparison between the number of refugees fleeing the Syrian war and those fleeing the South Sudanese conflict. The graphic shows that the Syrian conflict has displaced many more people — Syria is also more populous, with 18.5 million people compared to South Sudan’s 12.3 million — but the flow of refugees to neighboring countries has leveled off.
The opposite is happening in South Sudan. As prospects for peace crumbled, the fighting has intensified. In the past year, the number of refugees who had fled into neighboring countries has grown by more than 100 percent — in March 2016, 832,000 South Sudanese had been displaced; by March 2017, that number had grown to 1.7 million. More than 100,000 South Sudanese arrived in Uganda in the first 44 days of 2017.
Source: NPR
Via OpenHeaven.com
DAVID'S DOWNLOADS
TABERNEAGLE THOUGHTS FROM.....Quoting 1 John 2:1-6, six of the most thought provoking and important verses in scripture for walking with Jesus today. A4 size.
Download your free PDF File here.....
WAXING LYRICAL
Playing with words (other than 'munting' them for TXT messages) is both fun and meaningful.WORDPLAY
God is good.
Good is God.
Rather the Father.
To pray and obey.
No time to bide.
In Him abide.
There's the sun.
Here's the Son.
Vie, try, sigh.
Die, guy, high!
Bye, bye!!!
More of David's poetry here.....
A DAVID MUSING
Last week was the water colour, (repeated above) this week the reality! Your choice of the most real! LOL!Busking 3 times this week, I have got to quite enjoy it!
But like all good things, it has basically come to an end. The cruise ship season has now finished, as we are now well into Autumn, and Winter beckons! Well, not much of it for us as we head to the warmer climes of Kenya.
So often the perception and reality of our lives is very different. We put on a show in public, but reveal a different side at home with those we live with.
As Jesus gradually changes us into His image, so we become more like Him all the time.
How is your life?
Until next week.......
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD.
His servant and yours
David Tait
Today's 'Word Puzzle' Answer: LEAKING
TODAY'S 'BIBLE QUESTIONS' ANSWER: c. 3 (Acts 13-14; Acts 15:36-18:22; Acts 18:23-20:38)
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ABOUT US
WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Hastings, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God's people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ's return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord's direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our websitewwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.
Walking With Jesus Ministries
7 Bull Street
Ahuriri
Napier
New Zealand
Phone: (06) 835 0567 International (+64) 6 835 0567
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz
Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "... so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole - and have a smile while doing it!
For comments upon and contributions to this service, please contact
david@wwj.org.nz