What does it take to move you from being someone who you read about in a book to the next book written about you? When you look at some of the most influential people to ever live such as Martin Luther King Jr. or Smith Wigglesworth, it's not about possessing more skill or talent, rather a leap of faith into the unknown. As Christians, we know how to dream. We read the books and heard the testimonies of healings and revival, but we yet to see these things for ourselves. Through taking risk and stepping out, we learn we are able to run past the walls we set for ourselves and learn fear is only a tool to keep us contained behind those walls.
In the spring of my senior year of high school, I stepped into something completely mysterious to me.
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We are told told we are Sons of God, but what does this really mean? What if I told you Jesus isn’t a standard to live up to, but is the image of who we are what we can do. As Sons of God, we are the highest form of creation in the world! We are given the keys to the kingdom; born to destroy the works of the devil. We contain all the power of the universe inside of us, there is nothing we lack. The only reason you are not stepping out is because you haven’t received a big enough revelation. Once you receive God’s eyes and heart for his children it is easy to tell people about Jesus and his love for …show more content…
I will tell you from experience, I come up to someone with an incorrect word of knowledge all the time. The only way to grow and get better at things is by practicing even though we fail sometimes. In the story of me stepping out in the cafeteria, I thought I approached him with an incorrect word of knowledge, but you never know! God is so proud of his children stepping out and will give them more and more to steward. Just like children learning a language the first time, so it is hearing God’s voice. It is crucial to reach out for it and be confident, and praise God when we get a word wrong because we are obedient and we are fools for Christ! Stepping out and getting a word wrong is much better than staying silent. I remind myself of the quote from Babe Ruth, “Don’t let the fear of striking out stop you from playing the game.” This quote is so accurate for hearing God’s voice and reaching the people around
... that just learning about the Bible is not enough, but having a deepening understanding and personal relationship with it, so then there will be a transformation with the individual.
“Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it” (Lewis, “Mere Christianity”). C.S. Lewis, a renowned broadcaster, essayist, lecturer, novelist, theologian, and Christian apologist, used his writing to create a significant effect on the Christian movement. During his lifetime, Lewis went through an amazing transformation from an avid Atheist to a strong Christian, and dedicated his career to sharing the truths of Christianity in his writing. Lewis utilized Christian apologetics to explain and defend his views of Christianity, and made the idea of Christianity more accessible to
For instance there was a real separation that my parents never got involved in school issues, they never called my teachers, they never sent letters and so I think a lot of school was sort of my universe, my parents never got involved in it. You would get on a bike sometimes on the weekends and ride you know twenty blocks over to your friends house and you could spend the day there, unlike now. When I was younger in the summers if it was hot or you didn't wanna come outside and play we would take the rule book “Encyclopedia” and just sit down and read through the world book, and so there was a lot of different subject areas that I was interested in. When I went to college I couldn't pick a major, they had an interdisciplinary major they called American studies so you could study American politics, art theater and music, literature and that appealed to me but I didn't know all through college what I wanted to do for a living. I really did enjoy my adulthood though, I mean I think it was really fun I was living in New York City and I was working, I was gaining confidence you know cause I was behind two sisters who were bossy and
One of the primary strengths I found in Is God a Christian by Kirby Godsey, is its relatability. What makes a book interesting to a reader, is their ability to put themselves into the text. Throughout my time reading this book, I constantly felt like I was able to look back into my own life and compare myself to Godsey’s own life. For example, towards the beginning of the book when he mentions "The Plague of Certainty", it was something that truly hit home as throughout my childhood and progression to adulthood I have always held a strong fear of uncertainty.
Speeches functioned as great tools for inspiring and motivating people. A passionate and charismatic speaker could often change a group of people’s view of the world with just a short speech. A perfect example of this phenomenon can be seen in the leaders of religious groups such as Matthias and Joseph Smith. These two men both possessed the ability to make people pi...
Martin Luther King Jr., an American Baptist minister and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, spoke out to eight clergymen about why not standing with him during this time of discrimination is ultimately an unwise choice if they want to consider themselves “men of God.” Likewise, Jonathan Edwards, one of the most powerful and persuasive Puritan preachers, spoke out to everyone in the countless communities he visited to convince them that it is vital to recommit their life to God. Both MLK and Edwards pieces are effective. An effective piece is a piece that keeps a single focus and successfully convinced an audience to adopt the author's point of view. MLK and Edwards share a sophisticated use of the same techniques to persuade
My favorite part of the book was the chapter on “Ethics.” I believe my moral compass will guide me in the work place, amongst many other places. For example; the ENTJ, is said to be driven by success. If I do get into a corporate position or become a politician, I’m sure there will be bribes and offers that require me to compromise my beliefs for a move up “the ladder.” As a believing Christian I’ll be sure to look out for possible avenues of temptation although; I’m sure I won’t make such dreadful mistakes, the information I’ve gained from my research makes me want to be all the more
... how Martin Luther King Jr. vividly and lucidly adapts quotes from the Bible to move and sway his audience.
The first way is to live out that image. I think Augustine Of Hippo summed this up well when he said, “Humans were created in the image of God. True freedom, then, is not found in moving away from that image but only in living it out.” 4 The first and primary goal I believe each Christian should have is to win over people for Christ. If I am able to live out the image of God, I hope that people will naturally want to know what it is I “have.” With this I can start a dialogue with them and hopefully bring people to Christ. A short antidotal example of where this can be useful is in the Marine Corps. Many marines don’t relate well to people who are not combat veterans. However Marines react well to those who have experienced the rigors of combat. If I have led well, and have shown the image of Christ through my actions then hopefully a natural consequence of that will at least be a interest in what sets me apart. Secondly is service over sovereignty. Akin summarizes this nicely by comparing Adam to Jesus, “a comparison of the two is Instructive: Christ Therefore Grasped not at the Sovereignty but service.”5 When working as an officer in the Marines my job should not be to command from the rear but rather to be at the forefront willing and able to dig foxholes at the front instead of siting in a command tent in the rear. Alternatively in the I/O field looking at how I
Almost every day throughout high school I experienced something that I could not identify. It was over a year since I had graduated until could put words to emotion. I discovered that I was not free in my own mind. I was in a prison. One that I couldn't touch and for many years I could not see. After several visits to counselors and therapists I finally had the words to describe what my experience was.
...ting and preaching. I think that claiming one’s unique voice and message is the key to joining the Great Awakening movement. People are transformed by encounters with the genuine. I hope to be the vessel that is truly me and truly what God wants for me to be.
The image of the preacher that most resonates with me within our readings is that of Paul Scott Wilson. Wilson brings to light the image of the preacher as storyteller or moviemaker. “If we imagine that we are directing a film we allow ourselves to think and compose sermons in a visual manner- which is how most of us think in any case.” This resonates with me a lot because personally I am a huge fan of movies. I am a visual learner, and like many in my own generation who have grown up with television, the internet, and other forms of digital media, I have a limited attention span. For this reason, the preacher needs to assume the role of a storyteller who can paint word pictures within the sermon. These word pictures
As you accept him today as your Lord and savior, you now become a child of God as recorded in John 1:12 “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
Sometimes you will struggle to hear God, or you will not hear God speaking as clearly as you would like. At other times, you will think you have heard God and respond to what He says only to find that you made a mistake.
to be great, he must be the servant of the rest. For even the son of