Courage where it counts!

We are getting such wonderful feedback from readers of 'Transform your work life'. A few days ago a reader sent me an email to let me know that they have just started a prayer group at their offices. He indicated that the hardest part was just doing it...

It takes courage to honor God in the workplace. But that is where it counts! His email blessed me and encouraged me to be more bold about my faith!

I was reminded of Karl Barth's little quite "Courage is fear that has said its prayers".

What step of courage must you take to establish Christ as Lord of your work life and your work place? Let us know! We'd love to pray for you!

Bread of heaven – Serving daily (A marketplace ministry testimony)

This morning I had a cup of coffee with my friend Andy who is an entrepreneur second to none! Andy owns a number of businesses (a thriving restaurant in a local mall, a bakery and various other enterprises). Andy has a passion for serving Jesus through his business - he is such an example of Colossians 3:23 "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord" I wrote about Andy in 'Transform your work life: Turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary calling' - here's an excerpt from page 91 of the book:

One example of a person who took the Church to hell is Andy Loughton, a marketplace minister from our Church. Andy loves the Lord, but of equal importance, Andy loves the people that the Lord loves. One of Andy’s business is a bakery in the centre of our town. The area close to the bakery is popular place for homeless people to congregate. Remember, as we discussed in the previous chapter, a minister is a servant who operates under the authority of the King. What do you think Jesus would do if he was the owner of ‘Bread of Heaven’ bakeries? Of course, he would use this business to minister to the needy. Thankfully Andy thinks like Jesus does, and so in his mind ‘Bread of heaven’ was a prime opportunity to establish the Church in the marketplace! Wherever you have need and you have a Christian in the same location you can be sure that Jesus wants to do something special. So Andy began to establish the Church in a simple way, as a baker he could provide some bread to feed the hungry, but he could also provide the bread of life (John 6:35). In a place where the Churches of our community were seldom active you will now find the Church meeting daily. The hungry are fed and the Gospel is preached. ‘Bread of Heaven’ has become a little like the story of Ephesus – there have been so many lives changed because of Andy’s obedience that many in our community are beginning to hear the good news (like in Acts 19:10).

This is how that section of the book concludes:

Remember, God’s intention for the Church is that it would be a mighty instrument of salvation, healing and transformation. In order to make that happen we will need to take the Gospel out of our local congregations and into the marketplace. Your workplace may just be the next Ephesus where the testimony of God’s grace is so powerful that everyone comes to hear the good news of Jesus (Acts 19:10)!

I'd love to hear some more examples of people like Andy, and companies like 'Bread of Heaven' who are doing extraordinary things to bring God's Kingdom to bear on their surroundings! Please do share any ideas and testimonies in the comments below or on the discussion and feedback page! One thing Andy did mention, which has been something I've often thought about, is how disconnected our Christian efforts are from the good work that other believers are doing. For example, he indicated that there are some days on which there are two Churches feeding the same people (one in the morning and another in the afternoon) and other days on which the homeless are not being fed. How do we create networks and relationships to help us work together more effectively for sustained transformation? I'd love to hear your thoughts! God bless, Dion

Prayer under pressure... And, the tone of your voice

What do an olive press, pressure, and the tone of your voice have to do with prayer?

Well, here's a copy of a sermon that I preached last night. It is actually a message suited to Maundy Thursday (the Thursday evening before Good Friday on Easter Weekend). However, it happened to be the thematic message in our series on Jesus' prayers that we have been following at Bryanston Methodist Church.

Prayer under pressure.doc (MS Word file, 80 kb)

We were so blessed with a FULL church and a magnificent response to the call for persons to respond for prayer and ministry. I would guess that of the 350 or so persons in the service 100 or so came forward for prayer.

This week I shall keep all those who responded in faith in my prayers, may the thlipsis of the olive grove translate your trials and temptations into a worthy testimony to God's grace.