Podcasts about Bible college

Partakers Church Podcasts

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 5, 2025 18:07

My Story Talk 22 Facing New Challenges We said goodbye to Basingstoke after a moving farewell weekend at the end of July 1978 and moved to Mattersey with a great sense of excitement and anticipation. We knew without a shadow of a doubt that the Lord was sending us there, but we were also aware that great challenges lay ahead, not just for the College, but for us as a family too. Challenges for the family The immediate challenge for the family was that there was nowhere suitable for us to live. The College did not have space to accommodate us for more than a few weeks before the students returned in September and although living in the attic rooms of the old building was fun for a while, it was hardly ideal for a normal family life. But fortunately we knew that the situation would not last for long. Because I was an only child and, therefore, our children were my parents' only grandchildren, our moving to Mattersey meant that we were now 250 miles away. Naturally, my parents wanted to be nearer to us than that and decided that they would move to be near us. Some new houses and bungalows were being built in the village, right opposite the College and Mum and Dad decided to buy one of them. However, they had still not sold their bungalow in Dorset. So to resolve the problem of our accommodation as a family the Board of Governors, with the help of the AoG Property Trust, loaned my parents the purchase price of the new bungalow in Mattersey on the understanding that Eileen, the children and I could live in it until a new house could be built for us in the College grounds. My parents were to repay the interest free loan once they had sold their bungalow. This arrangement worked very well and for our first year at Mattersey we lived in the bungalow, and in the summer of 1979 had the joy of moving into Koinonia, a new four-bedroomed house which we had had the privilege of helping to design, along with the challenges of overseeing the erection of a new-build property! It was also wonderful to have my parents living closer to us than ever before since we were married. But housing was not the only challenge facing us as a family during our first year at Mattersey. The children had to adjust to new schools. Deborah was 14 and Sarah 13 and having been used to a Comprehensive School in Basingstoke had now been accepted by the Elizabethan High School in Retford where the curriculum was different and meant that they had quite a bit of catching up to do in some subjects. Jonathan was just 7 and fortunately there was a primary school in the village, where I think he settled in quite well, although he had to get used to the fact that the other children spoke with a different accent and thought that he was ‘posh'. He once came home and said to Eileen, Mummy, my friends don't say ‘something'. They say ‘summat'. But by and large the children adjusted very well, as also did Eileen who had now become the College Matron. This was not a position she had sought. She had thought that when I became the principal she would just be my wife and lend a hand in the College when she could. However, when, shortly after my appointment, Aaron Linford, the Chairman of the Board of Governors, had asked me, Will Mrs. Petts be the Matron? and I had replied that she was not expecting to be employed by the College, he said, Well, if she becomes the Matron we can pay her. And that, of course, settled it! It did take time for Eileen to adjust to her new role which entailed heading up the entire domestic side of life at the College, but over the 21 years that she did it she grew in confidence, exercising her authority with kindness and firmness, signing off her memos to students with the letter M, which, I think some of the students understood to stand for Mum rather than Matron. I attribute much of our success at Mattersey to her, though, if she were still with us, I know she would be quick to deny it. So the move to Mattersey presented challenges to all of us as a family, but there were challenges for me personally too. These included the challenges of new responsibilities, new relationships with the staff and governors, and the expectations that my fellow AoG ministers had of me. The challenge of new responsibilities The Principal of the Bible College was appointed by the General Council, meeting at its Annual General Conference. (The General Council, which under God, was the final authority for decision-making in the fellowship, comprised all accredited AoG ministers together with delegates or representatives from churches which had no minister). The appointment was for two years, and although this was later changed to four, it meant that I was subject to re-election on a regular basis. Like all other Heads of Department in AoG (e.g. Home Missions, Overseas Missions, etc.), as Principal I had to submit an annual report to the Conference and to answer any questions before the vote for re-election took place. Although this did, I confess, lead to a certain sense of insecurity, it did mean that I knew that I was accountable, and I knew to whom I was accountable. This is vitally important for anyone privileged to hold a position of authority. And the position with which I had been entrusted carried with it a considerable amount of authority and indeed of responsibility. But that brings me to the more specific details of my responsibilities as principal. These included overseeing the welfare of the students, staff, and faculty, appointing the faculty and planning the curriculum, hiring the staff, interviewing prospective students, maintaining discipline, and promoting the College by advertising in magazines and visiting local churches, and maintaining the College property, buildings and land. But of course, I was not expected to do all this single-handed. I soon discovered that what the Lord had shown me at Basingstoke about the principles of team leadership in a local church was to be just as relevant to the leadership of the College. Despite all the authority vested in me as principal and the responsibilities that accompanied it, I was very conscious right from the start that I needed the help and advice of those who worked with me. The challenge of new relationships When we arrived at Mattersey the key workers at the College were John Carter and Ernest and Joan Anderson. Some of the previous principals on taking up office had seen fit to appoint an entirely new faculty and staff, but this was not something which I was prepared to consider. I felt that I needed the help of those who already had the experience of working at Mattersey and, anyway, asking them to leave would have hardly been fair to them, bearing in mind their faithful service to the College. John Carter was now in his eighties and living in the College as a resident tutor. He had had a long association with the College, first when his brother Howard was principal when the College was at Hampstead, and later when he himself was the principal at Kenley. For us as a family it was a great pleasure to share meals with this lovely old man in the College dining hall and gain from his wisdom and long experience of serving the Lord. He was always ready to give advice but never offered it unless I asked him for it. He remained as a lecturer at the College until the Lord took him home in 1982 when I had the privilege of officiating at his burial in the cemetery at Mattersey. Ernest and Joan Anderson and their three children were also living in the College when we arrived. It was clear to me that they had held the College together during David Powell's principalship by their dedicated hard work. I had got to know them during my monthly visits to lecture at Mattersey and I knew that their continued service at the College would be vital for at least the first few years of my principalship. Ernest served not only as a lecturer but was also responsible for book-keeping, student ministry and evangelism, and for the upkeep of the seven acres of the grounds and garden. Joan had an incredible capacity for hard work and supervised the catering and cooking and much more. I will always be grateful to the Andersons for the help they gave me while I was finding my feet in my first few years as principal. They had faithfully carried a heavy burden, and I understood why in 1980 they decided to move back into pastoral work. We had worked happily together but there is always the potential for friction when a new leader takes over, and I'm sure that there must have been areas where they were not entirely happy with my decisions, especially as Ernest had hoped that he might have become the principal and had accepted nomination for it. But the humility and gracious spirit displayed by all concerned meant that any friction there might have been was reduced to a minimum. And what was true of the staff was also true of the Board of Governors who were also appointed by the General Council and to whom I was required to report every term. I think the support I received from the Board was probably due to three main things. Firstly, it was the Board who had nominated me for the job in the first place. Secondly, in my first year I had shared the principalship with Alfred Missen and Keith Munday, older men who contributed much to the reorganising of the College and from whom I gained a clearer sense of what might be expected of a principal. And thirdly, in line with the earlier history of the College, there was still a widespread feeling in AoG that the man of God's choice should be given his head to lead the College as he felt led by the Holy Spirit. The members of the Board did not see it as their role to tell the principal how to run the College, but rather to support, advise, and where necessary warn. And for this I was always grateful, especially when dealing with the occasional disciplinary situation with regard to a student or even a member of staff or faculty. So the challenge of new responsibilities and new relationships was made easier because of the dedicated help of the governors, faculty, and staff. Without it we could never have achieved what, by the grace of God, we were able to accomplish during the 27 years of my principalship. But perhaps the greatest challenge I faced throughout those years was meeting the expectations of Assemblies of God. The challenge of the expectations of Assemblies of God To appreciate fully the reality of that challenge it is essential to understand the variety of expectations held at the time by my fellow ministers. These ranged from those who did not see any need at all for a college to those who saw the urgency of a thorough training, both theological and practical, for those who were called to the important task of Christian ministry. This tension arises from the fact that as Pentecostals we believe in the power of the Spirit to equip us for service, but we also believe in the authority of Scripture and the importance of understanding the Bible correctly. I remember that when I was first appointed to the Board of Governors, Tom Woods, an elderly pastor, well respected for his proven prophetic gift, approached me and said, David, I give you this charge, keep the College Pentecostal. And this, I assured him, was something I fully intended to do. But his comment almost certainly reflected a suspicion of academic learning held by many of the older Pentecostals of that generation. This was well summarised by Donald Gee, a renowned Pentecostal pioneer and former principal of the College, when, speaking of the beginnings of the college, he wrote: A movement that embodies such a special testimony to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit has always tended to look askance at even the simplest form of scholastic training. But he then goes on to acknowledge that In more mature years the genuine place and value of Bible schools has been generally conceded, and even enthusiastically welcomed, in the Pentecostal Movement [1]. Nevertheless, at least for the opening years of my principalship, I was sometimes challenged by well-meaning ministers who suspected that the direction I was taking was too academic and I'm sure that there are still those who hold that view. But these good people clearly did not know me very well. The Lord who had baptised me in his Spirit had also given me academic ability, and I knew which was the more important! And improving the academic standard by no means prevented us from keeping the College Pentecostal. In fact, it had always been a Pentecostal college, as indeed it still is. It was started by the Pentecostal Missionary Union in July 1909. It was led by Pentecostal ministers, most notable of whom were Howard Carter (1921-1948) and Donald Gee (1951-1963), both prominent figures in Assemblies of God. However, although it always had a close relationship with AoG, it was only in 1951that it was given to AoG. Before then, during Howard Carter's leadership, William Kay informs us that Carter had run his school without a Board of Governors and that: …though he allowed Assemblies of God representatives to inspect the premises and comment on the doctrinal position of the curriculum, it was always perfectly clear that he had the last word on what was done… and that it was his wish that at no stage should the work lose its independence [2]. My purpose in saying this is to point out that for many years the College had run as a separate independent enterprise and although it was now, in the words of the AoG constitution, owned and controlled by Assemblies of God, it was still expected to run its own affairs and to finance itself. For example, the finances of all other AoG departments came under the control of the General Treasurer, but the Bible College employed its own bursar. So the challenges facing me were not only those of new relationships and new responsibilities, but also the ongoing tension between some Pentecostals and the academic and the dichotomy between what the AoG constitution required of me and the expectations of fellow ministers which were not always in line with that constitution or indeed with what I believed to be the will of God. However, the advice and support of the faculty and the Board of Governors were of great help, and with them behind me I learned to press ahead with what I felt the Lord was saying and leave the consequences with him. [1] Donald Gee, Wind and Flame, p. 60 [2] William K Kay, Inside Story, p. 208.

Bible Thought - Strategy to Cope - Hebrews 3

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 1, 2025 35:57

Developing A Strategy to Cope How can we, as 21st century Christians, keep from falling away. I would call it the COPE strategy: Consider, Persevere and Encourage. Keep Considering! (Hebrews 3:1-6) The first thing we do is to consider Jesus or as the NIV here puts it "fix our thoughts". Now remember, that these are Hebrew believers. I guess we would call them Messianic Jews today. They believed that Jesus was their Messiah, Saviour and Lord. They were obviously coming under pressure from their Jewish friends and leaders to deny this Jesus and return to the fold. They would have been told how great Moses was. In the previous chapter we read how Jesus is greater than the angels, because He is God, but was made a little lower than the angels when he became a man. Moses was cool In this chapter, we read a comparison between Jesus and Moses. Moses to the Jews was like a super-hero. Moses was revered because it was to him that God revealed His will. Moses was the key figure in the establishment of Israel as a nation - God's chosen people! Moses suffered persecution and rejection from the rest of the family of Israel. He had great zeal for God and was willing to sacrifice everything for God. He had fellowship with God. Yet all this is merely a shadow and a prophetic sign of what was to come in Jesus. Moses, we read in Numbers 12:7, was faithful to God's house, God's people. The house of God is the people of God. It was this Moses who was held in such high regard by the Jews, that some might well have been tempted to renounce Jesus and go back to the old ways. God's Messiah would need to be greater than Moses, and Jesus is and was this Messiah. Later on in the book of Hebrews, we discover that Jesus is greater than Aaron through whom the law was ministered; but here we see that Jesus is greater than Moses, the lawgiver, the servant of the house of God. Moses and Aaron represented God's house in Israel; Moses was the Apostle or Prophet and Aaron was the High Priest. Jesus, an Apostle and Prophet as well as being the High Priest, joined the two together. By Apostle, I mean as a Messenger - that's what an apostle is - a messenger or representative. As the Apostle of our faith, Jesus was faithful. Jesus was God's representative for us, making God known to us. Jesus was totally faithful, means to be both trusting and to be capable of being trusted. Moses was the one to whom the Law was given - the Mosaic covenant under which the Jewish people lived. This covenant with Moses commenced with the stipulation "Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me." (Exodus 19v5). This covenant was to Israel in order that those who believed God's promise to Abraham, could know how to live rightly in accordance with how God wanted them to live. This covenant with Moses covered the three areas of life: The commandments were given so they would know how to relate socially to God (Exodus 20v1-6) The judgments were given in order that they could relate socially to each other (Exodus 21v1 - 24v11) The decrees dictated their religious life so that God could be approached by humanity on His terms (Exodus 24v12 - 31v18). This covenant that God made with Moses and the ancient nation of Israel was never meant to be as a means for providing salvation. It was given so that they could realize the helplessness and futility of their own efforts and their need of God's help. It was to serve only as a protective fence until the promised Messiah came; the long waited for Saviour of all humanity, so that the whole world, Jew and Gentile, could be made right with God through faith and faith alone. In Comes Jesus And that is where Jesus comes in. As their Messiah and Saviour, Jesus ushered in the New Covenant, which was promised by God through the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel. What are the features of this New Covenant or promise? Four features of this covenant are: Regeneration -God will write His law on the hearts of people. Restoration - God will be their God, and they will be His people. Promised Holy Spirit - God will indwell people and they will be led by Him Justification - Sins will be forgiven and removed eternally This new covenant is sealed only through the perfect sacrifice of the God-Man Jesus on the cross. His blood ensures the truth of this New Covenant. His death pays the penalty for the sins of all people who say yes to God and are ready to run the race and travel the course. This New Covenant finalizes what the Mosaic Covenant could only point to: the follower of God living in a relationship with God conforming to God's holy character. That is one very specific way of Jesus being superior to Moses! The original readers of this letter being God-fearing Jews would be aware of all this. They would also be aware that it is sin, which separates humans from God and as a consequence leads to both a spiritual and physical death (Romans 3v23, Romans 6v23, Isaiah 59v2). In the Old Testament, sins were dealt with by blood sacrifices of atonement as coverings for sin (Leviticus 17v11), for without the shedding of blood there could be no remission of sin (Hebrews 9v22). A blood sacrifice is God's way of dealing with sin. These blood sacrifices of the Old Testament signified several things: It provided a covering for sin. It showed the great cost of sin. It was an exchange or substitution. It was only always going to be a temporary measure, as it pointed forward to Jesus' death and it needed to be done over and over again. So how is Jesus better than Moses? The answer lies in the solution to sin. The ultimate solution to sin lies not in the continual animal sacrifice under the Covenant with Moses, because as the writer later in Hebrews 10v4 stipulates the blood of animals cannot take away sin but was only ever going to be a veneer or a covering. That was why it was necessary to repeat time and time again! It is only through the victorious death of Jesus, that sin is permanently taken away (Hebrews 9:v11-15, 26-28), because Jesus is the permanent sacrificial substitute! It is as if the writer is saying give up on Jesus, stop considering Him and you would still be in your sins - that's the way the original readers would have understood it! Right mouse click or tap here to save this as mp3 And as for us? As followers of Jesus Christ we are built together so that the Spirit of God may join us together in love. Both individually and as a group, we are the house of God. Jesus said, "We will come and make our home in you". We know Jesus has been faithful as a Son over God's people. We celebrate His faithfulness at Easter, when we acknowledge and rejoice at the sacrifice He made for us. We remember it in the act of Communion, which we will have later. Jesus suffered persecution and rejection from his peers. We know Jesus was godly and full of zeal for God, and was willing to sacrifice everything for God and his people. We are the house of God. And yet, do we not reject Jesus sometimes, or do we keep on considering? Do we give Him and trust in His faithfulness to complete the good work he has started in us? This NIV translation has "fix your thoughts". Here is how the New King James Version puts verse 1 "Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus". I personally think that that is a better way of putting it. And not only because it has the word partakers in there! To "consider" has a much broader meaning than just "fixing your thoughts" as the NIV puts it. It means to seek, to fully understand or comprehend as well as fixing thoughtfully. To consider means to contemplate, to think about, to persevere with, to concentrate on and to fix eyes and thoughts upon. We have to allow Jesus Christ to permeate every aspect of our life, if we are to be partakers of Him. To consider not just how Jesus would do something, but how Jesus would think. What attitude would Jesus take? What would Jesus not do? Just as the Hebrews receiving this letter were told to do, in their race of the life following Jesus, we too are to hold fast to our courage, but only by considering Jesus and trusting in Him relying on the Holy Spirit to help us as we ask Him. This phrase "to consider" is perhaps the central theme of the book of Hebrews. We are to consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession. Jesus was faithful to the purpose of His Coming to be among people. His purpose in coming to earth, as a mere man, was to die for sins and be raised up on the third day so as to be victorious over death and sin. This Jesus perfected our human nature in His life of simplicity, suffering, devotion and obedience. He now lives at the right hand of the Father in heaven, to communicate to us His life and blessedness through the indwelling Holy Spirit. We must therefore consider Jesus in everything we do, every thought we think and in every attitude. This is the aim of the writer to persuade these Hebrew Christians that if they knew Jesus to be the faithful, compassionate Almighty apostle and priest in Heaven, then they would find everything in Him that they needed for life. Moses couldn't help them, but Jesus could! Moses had died, they could perhaps visit his tomb if they wanted to. But Jesus, well, Jesus' tomb was empty! Jesus is alive! The life of these Hebrew Christians would be united with their faith, and united with the life of Jesus whom their faith would glorify God. To these Hebrew Christians their salvation was based on Jesus, but to renounce Jesus and go back to following Moses was apostasy. Moses couldn't offer salvation because the Law was not meant as a means of salvation! But what about you? Are you trusting in this Jesus for salvation or are you even subconsciously relying on your own good works or something else? That was what these believing Hebrews were to do - consider how vastly superior Jesus is to Moses. We also are to consider how superior Jesus is to all other things that would try to entangle us and allure us away with false promises. Keep Persevering! (Hebrews 3:7-12, 15-19) And then after considering Jesus, these Hebrew Christians were to do something! They were to persevere in believing. The writer now warns these Hebrew believers against the sin of unbelief, which is the hardening of their hearts. The writer quoting from Psalm 95 reminds them of the way Israel rebelled against God in the desert. He warns them not to be like their forefathers, who did not trust fully in the Lord their God. From Psalm 95, he proceeds to remind them of their ancestors' deeds of unbelief. The privilege of the house of God is in hearing God's voice. By choosing not to listen to God's voice, peoples' hearts grew hard and cold. These words are of course written to believing Christian Hebrews, not unbelieving Jews, and are as appropriate for us today, as it was for them when they received it. As the people of God today, the Church, we need to be ready to listen to God's voice. As we see God working in us, our trust and belief in Him grows. If we do not believe in Him to help us, then of course our hearts will harden against him. As we grow and run the race, willingly sacrificing what needs to be sacrificed, we realize the glory and majesty of God, His holiness and perfection, His love and tenderness, and gladly listen to hear what He says to us, and willingly receive what He gives us. When you pray, do you have your Bible open? When you read your Bible, do you do so prayerfully and considerately? Bible reading and prayer go together! Unbelief stops a person from holding fellowship with God. Our God is alive, not a dead idol on the shelf or in the bank. This church of Hebrew believers, for all their Christian profession and religious exercises, were in danger of falling away from God, due to their not believing totally in Him. God would not abandon them, but they would abandon God! We need to take care, in case we also fall into unbelief. Unbelief and falling away act upon and react to each other. If we have any unbelief in our hearts tonight, then let us ask God to give us a heart that believes in Him so that we may not fall away from Him. And what is one of the main ways we can stop from falling away or letting others fall away into unbelief? Keep encouraging! Hebrews 3:12-14 So we keep on considering Jesus. We persevere in our believing in Him. Now thirdly, to show we are considering Jesus and are persevering in our believing Him, we are to encourage and be encouraged! In verse 12, we read, "See to it, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God". This means, that we are not only to take care of our own hearts, but as verse 13 goes on to say, we are to encourage and ensure no one is in danger of falling away. We who are believers, have to make sure that each one of us is staying on the path that leads to life, that is, the race towards Jesus. This group of Hebrew Christians were to help and encourage each other! And so are we! For us, maybe it is by phoning somebody you haven't seen in a while or to phone somebody you get a random thought about! If we see a brother or sister that we know is starting to fall out of the race, we need to do all we can to stop them falling away. We need to encourage them, to continue considering Jesus and believing in Him. We all know of people who are new believers, full of joy and zeal for God, that end up falling back into unbelief, unable to hold fast to the end. To some degree, it is because the Church body has failed to encourage them to continue on in the race. It is our duty, and our daily responsibility to encourage people on in the race or the journey. However, to encourage is not just these easy things. To encourage can also mean to rebuke, to correct in love. I look back at my tutor, during my first stint of Bible College back in the 1980s. His name was Ed. Ed the head we called him. We had weekly tutorials then. Every week he would get me to read a chapter of Knowing God by JI Packer and a chapter of Mere Christianity by CS Lewis. Then during our tutorial I would have to try and explain what I learnt from both those chapters. It was a slog at times I tell you. But it gave me a good grounding for my Christian thinking and life of discipleship to Jesus. Or I think back to my dear friend Rose, a kind and dear elderly lady from the church I used to attend back in the 80s. She would have us young adults back to her house overlooking the ocean for coffee after church on a Sunday evening. She would always be showing love, caring and encouraging to all people - ready to lift them when they were down and eager to cheer from the sidelines. She was also a tough cookie at times and if we got out of line, she would say so in no uncertain terms! When we see somebody sinning or contemplating Therefore in considering Jesus, believe in Him and encourage others to do the same. That is the purpose of encouragement mentioned here. Let all of us give ourselves to the service of Jesus to watch over other people: let all the fresh grace and deeper knowledge of Jesus we see, be for the service of those around us. Where will you and I be spiritually next year, in 10 years' time, in 25 years' time? Will you be able to honestly say to yourself at that time, I have grown spiritually and haven't fallen away? If you would call yourself a Christian, and you are unsure where you are, then do this. Look back and remember what Jesus has done for you. Consider Him as you look back to your first profession of faith in Him. Consider that just as He died, you died in the waters of baptism. Consider that just as He rose to physical life, you rose from the waters of baptism and will also rise again when you physically die. Consider that just as Jesus will be glorified, so too will you be glorified before the Father - if you hold out until the end. Be assured of who you are - you are a child of the living God - hold out to the end. He has a firm grip on you, so maintain your grip on Him! Remember who you are! The way to cope with the rigours of 21st century life as a Christian believer, is to keep considering, keep persevering and keep encouraging. Right mouse click or tap here to save this as mp3

Global Purpose—Boise Bible College Core Text: Acts 4:23-31 (Warrenton Location – Scott Lerwick)

Christian Church: Warrenton and Knappa

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 30, 2025 41:49

Scott Lerwick (Warrenton Location) Series: Global PurposeTopic: Boise Bible CollegeCore Text: Acts 4:23-31Recorded 6/29/2025For more resources check out cconline.cc or our YouTube page

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Recording Issues & Special Projects with Rev. Zach Cordle

Pod'N Me

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 25, 2025 44:40

Text us here! Hersh, we have had a plethora (big word for abuncha) disasters when it comes to the ministry of low expectations but today may have taken the cake (an old proverb that describes what we're saying here today). We recorded 30 mins of the most flawless audio/video we may have ever recorded and wasn't recording at all... It was the same as if we were 4 friends (loose term) talking on the speaker phone to an old friend and none of it was captured... So, we started over but that didn't hinder the usual underwhelming quality of the program. We had a wonderful day today because we got to talk to an old friend of Pod'N Me and he shared a special project that he has been working on for the past few months. He's a preacher friend of mine, Rev. Zach Cordle, that I met a few years back and he actually used to do some podcasting himself. He has been doing a music project for a very special cause as you will hear on the program today. Hannah Lloyd Cornett is recording a music CD in honor of her brother and sister-in-law that were tragically taken from this life while doing mission work. The proceeds from this CD will go to a building at the Bible College that they attended and is being constructed in their honor. If you want to order the CD or find out more about it here is some information:CD's can be purchased directly through Hannah's Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/share/1JT4hYSJnf/?mibextid=wwXIfrCD's will be available around the 1st or 2nd week of July.God bless & Enjoy! Support the showConnect with us at https://www.podnme.org/https://youtube.com/@devinbirdsongEmail devin@podnme.orgFollow us on Instagram @podn_mePersonalities on Pod'N MePastor: Devin BirdsongDeacon: Dustin WakleySongleader: Brad CottrellHershall: Jud IngramNews Anchor, Dink Burbank: Josh SmithGen Z Boy: Brooks Birdsong

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Leading with Purpose Summer Series: Harmonizing Faith and the Academy: The Church-College Partnership

Biblical Higher Ed Talk

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 24, 2025 33:27

Leading With Purpose Summer SeriesJoin Philip Dearborn, President of ABHE, for a special summer series designed to strengthen your leadership and renew your sense of mission. Every other week, you'll hear one of the most-listened-to conversations from past seasons. Each episode offering practical encouragement and a fresh reminder of why Christ-centered higher education matters.Originally aired Jan 2024Bridging the gap between local churches and Bible Colleges is essential to see success for both sides.It's time to invest in the community around our students and come together towards a common goal – serving God.That's why we're talking to Mark Jobe, President of Moody Bible Institute. As a bi-vocational pastor, Mark offers a unique perspective from both sides of the pulpit.In this episode, we talk about the importance of getting your students and staff involved in the local community.Join us as we discuss: - Tension between the academy and the church (8:00)- How we can best serve the local church (13:54)- Ways to connect your institution to surrounding churches (20:49) To hear this interview and many more like it, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website, or search for Biblical Higher Ed Talk in your favorite podcast player. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Episode 159: Which Mic Should Youth Pastors Use? Pro vs Budget Options

Hybrid Ministry

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 24, 2025 10:33

In this video, Nick Clason breaks down Which Microphone Youth Pastors Should Use—comparing budget phone mics, mid-tier gear like the Rode Wireless Go II, and pro options like the Sennheiser G4 and MKE 600. Whether you're filming TikTok devos, sermon recaps, or launching a youth ministry podcast, Nick gives real-world demos and witty insights so your church content sounds clear, not cringey. If you're investing in custom content through tools like Nick's Seasonal Social Media Pack, this mic guide ensures your message lands with excellence and clarity—not broom closet vibes. ☀️ SUMMER SOCIAL MEDIA PACK https://www.patreon.com/hybridministry/shop/summer-seasonal-social-media-1540452?utmmedium=clipboardcopy&utmsource=copyLink&utmcampaign=productsharecreator&utmcontent=join_link *

308 My Story Talk 21 The Rocky Road to Mattersey 1972-1978

Living Word Family Church Sermon Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 24, 2025 21:01

My Story Talk 21 The Rocky Road to Mattersey (1972-78) Welcome to Talk 21 in our series where I'm reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Last time I finished my series of talks on the years we spent I Basingstoke by telling you how in January 1972 God clearly told me that we were going to live at the Bible College. This didn't happen until 1978 when I was appointed principal of the College which by then had moved from Kenley to Mattersey. Today's talk will cover some of difficulties we faced on the way and how the Lord eventually brought us through. In December 1972, after he had served only two years as the Principal at Kenley, George Jeffreys Williamson suffered a heart attack, probably as a result of over-work combined with an accusation that was made against him by one of the students, and shortly after this the Board of Governors reluctantly accepted his resignation. Meanwhile, as there was no resident tutor at the time due to the departure of John Phillips, the Board asked some of the visiting lecturers, including me, to spend a few days at the college encouraging and taking care of the students. While I was there, Eric Dando, a member of the AoG Executive Council, asked me confidentially if I had ever thought of becoming the principal. This was not a complete surprise to me because of what the Lord had shown me earlier that year about living at the College, but at that stage I had not thought that I might be the principal. And I had never told anyone except Eileen about it. So I asked Eric why he was asking that question. He told me that it looked likely that Williamson would sadly be resigning and he felt that I might be a suitable person to take over. Although I felt that at the age of 33 I was possibly too young to be appointed to such a responsible position, I shared with him how the Lord had spoken to me back in January. The months that followed were something of a rollercoaster as Eileen and I lived with the tension that we all experience in times of uncertainty. We knew that the Lord had called us to the college, but was it his plan that I should be the principal? And was it to happen yet? All we could do was hang on to what God had shown us and rest in the certainty that whatever happens God is always in control. As it turned out, because a new principal could not be appointed until the General Conference the following May, the Board of Governors asked David Powell, the pastor of the Rotherham Assembly, to take care of the College until then. Meanwhile I was waiting to see if I would be nominated. Apart from Eric Dando, Arnold Shaw from Bracknell and Pastor Appleby from Reading had also expressed their confidence in me, but although individuals could make suggestions, nominations would only be accepted which had the support of at least one official council. And when Pastor Appleby suggested my name in a District Council meeting, the chairman, Billy Richards, said, In a few years, perhaps, which was to prove to be prophetic. I was encouraged by this, as Richards was, like Dando, a member of the Executive Council and a man I highly respected, and it was evident that he did see the potential in me but felt that now was not the right time, which confirmed what I had already suspected. It was clear that I would not yet be leaving Basingstoke, but that the Lord would fulfil his purpose for me at the proper time, and I had peace about that. That is until the unprecedented events that took place in May at the General Conference! Immediately before the vote was to take place to determine which of the men who had been nominated would be the next principal, there was a prophetic word saying that the man God had chosen knew who he was and that he should come forward and declare it! This threw the conference into confusion as it was completely contrary to the normal democratic process practised at conference. The Chairman had to make a decision. The prophecy had to be judged. He conferred with the Executive Council. The matter was put to the conference, and it was agreed to proceed in line with the prophecy. The man whom God had chosen knew who he was, and he should come forward and declare it. Was I the man? The problem was, I knew I was called to the college, but the Lord had never told me that I would ever be the principal. But while I was still churning these things over in my mind, David Powell, one of those who had been nominated, walked forward and told conference why he felt he was the man. I need to say, in passing, how unfair this procedure was to the two other nominees, one of whom, Clifford Rees, was not present because he was speaking at a meeting in another part of the conference. He told me afterwards that he would not have accepted nomination if he had not felt that he was the man. After Powell had made his statement the chairman gave opportunity for people to make comments or to ask questions, and one of those who came forward was my old pastor, Alfred Webb. His way back to his seat went right by me and I decided to ask his advice. A few months previously I had confidentially shared with him how I felt God had called me to the college, and so I quietly asked him if he felt I should share it with the conference. His reply was, Yes, it could be a B that leads to an A. So that is how I came to tell the entire conference, explaining that I had not come forward before as I could not claim that God had called me to be the principal, but that I did know that God had told me I would live at the college, and that if Brother Powell were elected, and felt it were appropriate, I would be willing to serve under him. That day Powell was appointed having received the required two-thirds majority vote of the conference, and a day or so later, when I had heard nothing from him, I approached him and said that I hoped he did not mind what I had said, to which he replied, My heart is with you I this matter, brother. Wait and see what happens. So I waited, and soon I discovered that he had appointed someone else to work with him. It was weeks later, however, before I received a letter from him saying that he would be happy for me to continue as a visiting lecturer teaching the same subjects as before. In fact, I was the only member of the old faculty who was invited to do so. I decided to accept even though my visits were to be monthly rather than fortnightly due to the fact that the college had now moved to Mattersey, some 200 miles north of Basingstoke, much further from home than Kenley had been. During the four years that David Powell was the principal, the college was facing considerable difficulties due to the fact that only part of the property at Kenley had been sold and there were insufficient funds to refurbish and develop the property at Mattersey. This was very evident each time I visited the college as a lecturer and, from 1976 onwards, as a member of the Board of Governors. And although these problems were not of Powell's making, it was also very clear to me that there were administrative issues that could easily be rectified without incurring any additional expenditure. As a result my desire to be more fully involved in the work of the college was increasing steadily, but at the time there seemed little likelihood of this happening soon. But then, quite unexpectedly, in January 1977 Powell informed the Board of Governors that he had decided not to stand for re-election at General Conference. (At that time all heads of department were subject to re-election every two years). So the other members of the Board agreed unanimously to nominate me. But when the news was out that Powell was not standing for re-election I was not surprised to discover that two others had accepted nomination from different councils. There was of course no guarantee that I would be elected especially bearing in mind the confusion that had arisen at the time of Powell's appointment, but I was nevertheless quietly optimistic that this might be the year when the Lord's word to me would be fulfilled. However, shortly before the conference we received the staggering news that Powell had changed his mind! He was going to stand for re-election after all. This was, to say the least, administratively inconvenient, and was not a little nerve-racking for me, but I was reassured by the Board of Governors that they would in no way withdraw their support for my nomination. But that was by no means the end to Powell's vacillating behaviour. On the first day of conference, he announced that he was withdrawing his name from the list of nominees. Once again the entire conference was thrown into confusion. As a result, when the vote was taken, none of the candidates received the required two-thirds majority and the appointment of the principal was placed in the hands of the Board of Governors and the Executive Council. A few weeks later, at a meeting where I was of course present as a member of the Board, various names, including mine were suggested and voted on by secret ballot, but none of us received the necessary two-thirds majority. So what next? It was finally decided to defer the appointment until the 1978 conference and meanwhile to appoint for the next year a team of three principals each of whom would serve for a term at the college but who would throughout the year be jointly responsible for the college. This was sometimes referred to later as the year of the three principals and, crazy as it may sound, turned out to be a blessing in disguise as I was appointed to serve for that year along with Alfred Missen and Keith Munday and benefitted greatly from their wisdom and greater experience in ministry as we made decisions together about the curriculum, the members of faculty, the timetable for the year, rules for students, and so on. I agreed to take the first term and, with the exception of the two weeks I was at camp in the New Forest, was resident in Mattersey from the end of July until Christmas, going home only for occasional weekends to see the family. The other weekends I was away on ministry, often with some of the students promoting the college. It was on one of these occasions that I went with about 50 of our students to Newport in South Wales. There was a big inter-church meeting on the Saturday night and on the Sunday the students went to different churches to sing, testify, and preach. I stayed in Newport to preach in the church there. After Sunday lunch the pastor, Eric Dando, asked me if I would like to phone Eileen, which of course I was grateful to do. After telling her that the weekend was going well, I asked her how she was and was shocked to hear her reply. I'm O.K., but I very nearly wasn't! Oh! What's happened? I replied. She told me that there had been a women's missionary meeting in London and that she and several of the ladies from the church in Basingstoke had gone to it. They had travelled in two cars and on the way home, on the road between Reading and Basingstoke, several horses ran into the road in front of the cars. It seems that they had escaped from a nearby field. One of the horses collided with the car in which Eileen was travelling in the front passenger seat. The impact was so great that the front of the car roof caved in, to within an inch of Eileen's head. The car was a complete write-off and, as the people from the car in front walked back to see exactly what had happened, they feared the worst. At this point it is important to explain that at that time the wearing of seat-belts was not compulsory in the U.K. and the car in which Eileen was travelling didn't have any. Bearing in mind the speed at which the car had been travelling when it collided with the horse, both Eileen and the driver should have been thrown forward through the windscreen. Indeed, the woman seated behind Eileen was thrown forward so violently into the back of Eileen's seat that it was twisted out of position. Yet Eileen was not thrown forward, and none of those travelling in that car was seriously injured. They all walked away relatively unharmed. Eileen told me that throughout the whole incident she was strangely conscious of something – or someone? – holding her to the back of her seat, preventing her from being thrown forward. Was it a coincidence that on that very evening I had been preaching in Newport on a subject I have rarely preached on before or since? My subject was ANGELS. On another such occasion we took a bus-load of about 45 students to Bethshan Tabernacle in Manchester. There were several hundred people in the meeting during which the students sang and testified and I preached. As soon as I had finished preaching , an Irish woman near to the back of the meeting began to speak in tongues. As I was still at the microphone, it seemed right for me to interpret so that everyone present would hear and understand what had been said. So I spoke out in faith trusting that God would give me the right interpretation for what had been said in tongues. When I had finished, we sang a hymn and the pastor closed the meeting in prayer. As soon as the meeting was over, one of our students, Guetawende Roamba from Burkina Faso, rushed up to me. He was clearly very excited, and when I asked him what was the matter, he told me that the woman who had spoken in tongues had been speaking his native language. Now in Burkina Faso they speak French, and because I speak French, I knew that she had not been speaking French. So I wondered what language it might be. What language? I asked. Moré, he replied. It's our native African language. Only the educated people speak French as well. Frankly, at that time I had never heard of Moré – and we found out later that the Irish lady who had spoken in tongues had never heard of it either! But I was excited that I had been present when speaking in tongues had been recognised as a real language. At the same time, I was not a little concerned because I was the one who had given the interpretation! As I mentioned in an earlier talk, I had been interpreting tongues since 1960 when I was a student at Oxford, but it had always been (as it always must be) ‘by faith ', and I had no certain evidence that the gift was genuine. I had simply trusted the promise of Jesus that God gives good gifts to those who ask him (Matthew 7:11), but it's easy to imagine how embarrassed I would have been if I had ‘got it wrong' in the presence of one of my Bible College students! I hardly dared ask the question, but I knew I had to. And what about the interpretation, Gueta? Was it accurate? And of course, it was. I wouldn't be telling this story if the interpretation had been wrong! What an amazing thing! The Holy Spirit inspired an Irish woman to speak an African language which she had never heard, or even heard of, and then gave the interpretation to an English man who had never heard of it either! So exciting things were happening during the term I spent at Mattersey. The Lord was certainly encouraging us, but in the light of all that had happened at previous conferences I knew there was no guarantee that my position as principal would become permanent. Friends like Paul Newberry and Henry Drabble had told me they thought I would never be appointed as principal. My Oxford MA would count against me! And towards the end of the term there was to be a special conference at Mattersey to debate whether AoG really needed a Bible College! What's more, humanly speaking my financial position was far from secure. Keith Davidson, one of the elders at Basingstoke had given up his secular employment to give himself full-time to the work of the church, but had exhausted his savings, so I had told the church to pay him instead of me as I felt that the Lord might soon be moving me on. These were the kind of things that were occupying my thinking until, during the New Year Convention in Denton at which I was preaching, I finally came to the conclusion that nothing really mattered except for the fact that Jesus died for me. I gave it all to him. And he did meet all our financial needs that year, although I had no guaranteed income, and in the 1978 conference I was finally appointed as Principal of Mattersey Hall Bible College.

Guest Perfeto Esquibel

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 23, 2025 80:05

For over ten years, Pastors Perfeto and Lisa Esquibel have ministered to thousands of people in Fort Worth, TX. They have achieved this through the teaching of the Word of God, street witnessing, biker rallies, children's outreaches, dramas, Spanish services, prison ministry, Bible College, feeding and clothing the homeless, and providing clothing, bedding, and toiletries to families in need.Through their ministry, people have been set free from drug addiction, alcoholism, gang violence, depression, and suicide. Families and marriages have been restored, people have been healed in their bodies, and set free in their minds.https://www.centerfw.church Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Obey God

Thought For Today

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2025 3:23

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 21st of June, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the first book of the Bible, Genesis 12:3, and the Lord says:”I will bless those who bless you…” [He's talking about Abraham] “…and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” What an incredible promise to receive from God and how is that? Well, the answer is found in the Book of James 2:23: “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.” How would you like to be called the friend of God? Everybody wants to be God's friend, even the devil, but I want to tell you something, this scripture tells us that God said, “That farmer, Abraham, is my friend.” He doesn't say that to many people. We might ask ourselves the question, why? Well, it's very simple - because Abraham obeyed the Lord. Abraham became God's friend because he did what God told him to do.A good idea is not always a God idea. I think you've heard us say that before. Abraham was a very prosperous farmer. He wasn't going bankrupt, he wasn't trying to make “Plan B”. No, no! He was very prosperous, but he left everything that he had and he went, not to another country, not to another destination, to an unknown destination. God said, ”I will show you where to go.” He did it immediately. That's why God loved Abraham so much folks. We need to hear from God! Many many years ago when I first met the Lord in a very real way, yes, close to fifty years now, I was so in love with the Lord, I still am, maybe even more so today because I know Him better. I felt that a good idea would be for me to give, not sell, my farm away, go to Bible College, study the Word, (there's nothing wrong with that, by the way) and then become a pastor, but I went to the mountain and I fasted and prayed for six days and then I came back and I said to Jill, my dear wife, my best friend, I said, ”We're not going anywhere. We're not giving the farm away. We are staying right here.” And that is exactly what I did and as a result the Lord has blessed me unimaginably! I could never dream what was going to take place on this farm. You do the same today - do what Abraham did. Obey God and He will be your friend!Jesus bless you and goodbye.

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Spreading the TRUE gospel to the World and more! w/Don Shenk

Change My Life

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2025 31:57

Send us a textAnd He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Mark 16:15We have a mandate as believers to spread the gospel to the world. Our guest Don Shenk goes into detail on how he has successfully been sharing the gospel to various countries through the Tide Ministry, persecution of the saints, America not being a "Christian" nation, and advice for those who are called to the mission field. I promise you will definitely be inspired by this episode! You can connect with the Tide Ministry HERE Stay Connected!Rate & Review our podcast HERE Check out our website HEREWe appreciate your support ❤️Subscribe & follow us on ➡️ social mediaABOUT THE GUESTThe Tide Director Don Shank was born to missionary parents in what was then known as Rhodesia, and prior to joining The Tide in 2001 served as a missionary teaching at a Bible School in Zimbabwe, Africa. In addition to lecturing in the classroom at Ekuphileni Bible Institute Don served as Academic Dean, Director of Student Ministries, and also developed and implemented a manual skills training program to enable rural pastors to minister bi-vocationally. Through twenty eight years living in Zimbabwe, and numerous visits to Africa, Eastern Europe and India as a ministry administrator and resource person for church conferences and leadership training events, Don has acquired a wealth of international, cross cultural ministry experience. As the world becomes more and more of a global village, Don's greatest passion is to reach people for Jesus Christ and to bring them into the Church. Support the showThanks For Listening

A Testimony of Miraculous Provision: Interview with Luckson Duverne

The Christian Optimist

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2025 72:50

In this episode Pastor Raef interviews Luckson Duverne, as they discuss Luckson's miraculous testimony of God's provision. From growing up in Haiti, to surviving abuse in Florida, to Bible College, to leading an incredible ministry caring for underprivileged orphans in Haiti, Luckson's story is one that highlights the power of Christ in a life.Learn more about Faire Garden Foundation: https://www.fairegarden.org/

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307 My Story Talk 20 Ministry in Basingstoke 1968-78 Part 5

Into The Fog with Peter Laws

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 12, 2025 17:21

My Story Talk 20 Ministry at Basingstoke 1968-78 Part 5 Welcome to Talk 20 in our series where I'm reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Last time I was telling you how God was clearly blessing my trips abroad, to Switzeralnd, France, Belgium and the USA, and, thanks entirely to the gift that God had given me, my teaching was in increasingly great demand both at home and overseas. But how did all this fit in with my responsibilities as the pastor of the church in Basingstoke? The Lord showed me that the answer lay in two things – writing and team ministry. Writing ministry Today, of course, it's relatively easy to communicate with people all over the world by a variety of options available through the internet. But before the internet, apart from radio and television, speaking on which was not readily available, Christian literature was the main means of communicating with potentially thousands of people. What you write can travel further than you can. One example of this was Andy Anstey, a Canadian who became a student at Mattersey during the early years of my principalship. He told me that he had been baptised in the Spirit in a university library in Canada as a result of reading my book, The Dynamic Difference. I have never been to Canada, but one of my books had found its way there. It had started as a booklet I wrote for the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship in 1971, Be Filled with the Spirit. Jim Hall had used it on my first trip to Illinois and persuaded me to expand it, as a result of which Receive Power was published in 1974 in time for my second trip to the States. It was finally published in 1978 by Gospel Publishing House, Springfield MO, under the title, The Dynamic Difference. I was also writing articles for magazines like Redemption Tidings and Youth Aflame, the AoG youth magazine. At Basingstoke I had given a series of Bible studies on the Fundamental Truths of Assemblies of God, and I asked Vernon Ralphs, the editor of Youth Aflame, if he would like me to write a series of articles on the subject. Those articles were eventually published by Peniel Press as a book under the title, Know the Truth, in 1976, and with the cooperation of the publisher, I was able to give a free copy to every AoG minister at the General Conference that year. And something similar happened with another series of articles I wrote for Youth Aflame. At Colchester I had duplicated a series of short talks for young people who had just given their lives to Jesus and these were eventually published as a book in 1977 under the title How to Live for Jesus. Both these books are still being used, over fifty years later, by a number of churches today, though Know the Truth is now published under the title You'd Better Believe It. It has been translated into several languages including German, French, Italian, Finnish, Spanish, Urdu, and Nepalese. Another publication that is still being used widely around the world is the distance learning course I wrote on the Major Prophets for the International Correspondence Institute in Brussels under the title Themes from the Prophets. I have already mentioned that this was a subject I was lecturing on in Kenley Bible College and I already had many pages of lecture notes that I had produced and duplicated for the students. So when Dr George Flattery, the brother of Warren and founder and director of ICI, asked me if I would be willing to write the course, I was happy to do so. This involved several visits to Brussels, each of which lasted for two weeks, where I could get on with writing the course undistracted. It was also a great opportunity to meet other Pentecostal educators from around the world, including the renowned New Testament scholar, Professor Gordon Fee who was writing the course on 1 Corinthians and became a good friend. So I will always be grateful for the opportunity I was given to be a part of ICI, but especially for the induction teaching they offered to all their course writers, which included the requirement to read The Art of Readable Writing by Rudolf Flesch the basic message of which, as I remember it, was to write as you speak, rather than writing in the academic style you were required to use at school or university. Other things Flesch recommended were, wherever possible, to use short words rather than long ones, personal names rather than pronouns, the active voice rather than the passive, and short sentences rather than long ones – which prompts me to close this sentence before it gets any longer! So, to summarise, I had realised that by using literature a person's ministry could be extended far beyond their time and ability to travel. But that in itself did not solve the problem of reconciling what I perceived to be my obligations to the church where I was pastor with the travelling ministry the Lord was clearly opening up for me. And, as I was praying about this, he answered my question by whispering into my heart the word Antioch. Of course, I knew that Antioch was the place where the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:26), but at first I couldn't see how it was relevant to my problem, so I decided to turn to Acts to see if I could find the answer. And I did. The answer was the development of team ministry. Developing Team Ministry The church at Antioch was started by believers who had been scattered as a result of the persecution of the church that took place after the stoning of Stephen. Some of them went to Antioch spreading the word to both Jews and gentiles and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. When the apostles at Jerusalem heard about this they sent Barnabas to take care of the work, and even more people became Christians. Realising that he needed help, he went to Tarsus to find Paul and brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught great numbers of people. From this it is clear that they were both, to say the least, key people in the church. And yet in Acts 13 we are told that the Holy Spirit sent them away from the church for a time in order to pioneer churches in other countries. The reason they were able to do this and, on their return, find that the church was still strong, was because they were not the only leaders in the church. Acts 13:1 talks of three others at Antioch who were prophets and teachers. As I read about this it became obvious to me that this was the Lord's answer to my question. If I was to continue travelling we would need other leaders in the church. So I started on a detailed study of what the New Testament has to say about the leadership of the local church, and I discovered that churches were led by a team of elders, overseers, or pastors, and as I investigated the passages where these are mentioned I saw very clearly that these were all interchangeable terms. In the New Testament the elders were the pastors. They were the ones who were the shepherds of the flock and had the responsibility of watching over, or overseeing it. I have gone into this in detail in my book, Body Builders, and so there is no need to repeat it here. All I need to say is that I came to the conclusion that the traditional system of having just one person as the church leader really has no biblical basis and that team leadership must be the way forward. I have already mentioned how the pastor in East Saint Louis had come to the same conclusion and it soon became apparent that this was something the Lord was saying to many different leaders around the world. I preached on this in the Home Missions Conference at Weymouth in 1973 and was pleasantly surprised that I was not the only one to hold this view. But where were these new leaders for our church in Basingstoke to come from? The answer was simple. We already had them, but they had never been recognised. There were two men, David Moncaster and Keith Davidson, who, I felt, both met the biblical qualifications mentioned in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. But before I asked the church to appoint them, I spent several weeks teaching about the principles of church leadership. If we are going to persuade people to break away from long held traditions it is vital that we show them very clearly that what we are proposing is in line with scripture. I have already mentioned that Bill Mitchell had already been recognised as an elder in the church before I came. But after my teaching on the biblical qualifications of elders he graciously came to me and said that in the light of what I had taught he thought he was probably a deacon rather than an elder and offered to resign. I told him that I thought he was probably right, but that, as his resignation might be misunderstood by some of the members, I would prefer him to remain as an elder, nominally at least, as long as we both understood that this was not really his role. And to this he readily agreed. So for the final few years of my time in Basingstoke the church was led by a team which we referred to as the pastoral oversight, Willaim Kay being added to the team a little later. The church continued to grow under this system of leadership, and when the Lord moved me on to Mattersey the church was in safe hands. The call to the Bible College I have already mentioned that in 1970 I started as a visiting lecturer at Kenley Bible College. On one of my visits in January 1972 I learned that John Phillips, who was a full time residential tutor at Kenley would be leaving, and as I was travelling home that evening, I was wondering who might be chosen to replace him. It would surely be someone who was already teaching at the college and I was thinking through the names in the college prospectus when I came to my own name. But I quickly dismissed the thought as I was sure that I would be considered too young for such a responsible position. And anyway, God had called me to build a big church in Basingstoke, hadn't he? But no sooner had I thought this than I felt a check in my spirit and said, But of course, Lord, I'll do whatever you want me to do. But if you ever do want me to leave Basingstoke I will need very clear guidance on the matter. You may remember the struggle I had when we first moved to Basingstoke and how for some months I wondered if we had done the right thing. I didn't want a repetition of that. But now, having prayed that prayer, I tried to put the matter out of my mind. This turned out to be harder than expected and that very night, some time between 1:00 and 2:00, on Tuesday 25th January, I woke up with a burning conviction that I was going to live at the Bible College. I tried to shake it off, but it would not go away, so I went downstairs to pray. What I said to the Lord went something like this: Lord, you know I need my sleep, so if this is of you, and you want me to go to the college, would you please tell me quickly? And he did! As I opened my King James Bible, it fell open at 2 Chronicles 34:22. I could hardly believe my eyes. It contained the words dwelt… at the college. With the exception of the parallel verse in 2 Kings 22:14, this is the only reference to the word college in the whole Bible. This had to be more than coincidence. I had asked the Lord to tell me quickly, and he did. But, rather like Moses in Exodus 3 and 4, I found myself making excuses like, I've only been in Basingstoke for four years, and, They wouldn't choose me. I'm too young. I don't have enough experience etc. But just as God had an answer for every objection Moses made, he had an answer for mine too. For each objection I made he led me directly to a Bible passage that answered it. As a result I was entirely convinced that I was going to live at the College. I didn't know when but thought that it might be in September after John Phillips had left. In fact it was five or six years later! I have discovered that one of the hardest things in understanding the will of God is his timing. I have also discovered that God seems to give us the clearest guidance when he knows that there is trouble ahead! It's only the certainty that we are in his will that will sustain us through trials and difficulties and tests to our faith. And there were to be plenty of those before we got to Mattersey! But that's something for our next talk.

50. Bible College Demon (They Prayed on Halloween. Something Answered)

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 9, 2025 53:31

Send us a textA group of UK Bible college students hike up the Malvern Hills one Halloween night to pray over their town. But what they find on that hill—and what followed them home—changed everything.In this chilling true story, you'll hear the terrifying encounters of Josh, a former theological student who never believed evil could walk so close. Shadow figures with impossibly long fingers… a locked wardrobe that opens on its own… and a horrifying phone call filled with screams. And just when he thought it was over—ten years later, the thing returns.Then, near the end of the episode, I share a disturbing historical incident I discovered. Could this terrifying ordeal connect to an ancient murder—and a monk whose blood still stains the ground?Subscribe and join our growing community of believers, skeptics, and the curious. Welcome… Into the Fog. For more on Peter Laws check out:www.patreon.com/peterlawsor www.peterlaws.co.uk

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Why Are Farmers Being Murdered in South Africa? with Simon Brace

I Don't Have Enough FAITH to Be an ATHEIST

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 3, 2025 52:37

Why are white farmers being murdered in South Africa, and why does the media ignore or deny it? Frank sits down with Simon Brace, National Director of Ratio Christi South Africa, to expose how Marxist ideology, CRT, and postmodern thinking have taken root in universities and are reshaping the soul of the nation. Together, Frank and Simon tackle pressing questions like:What happened when Simon's uncle (a farmer) was murdered in 2007?What are the political parties in South Africa and how did the country become so vulnerable to Marxism and socialism?What's happening at universities in South Africa and how does that compare to what's happening here in the United States?What role is fatherlessness playing in the breakdown of society around the world?Why is teaching logic and critical thinking skills so important in today's postmodern culture?What is the biggest lie being told in South Africa?What did Simon recently discover USAID was supporting in South Africa?How do policies in the United States affect other countries and why must we continue to stand up for the existence of moral and objective truth in the public square?As South Africa faces political unrest, rising crime, and deep cultural confusion, people around the world need to understand what's driving the chaos. If you want to support Simon on his mission, please keep South Africa in your prayers and visit the link in the resources listed below.Resources mentioned during the episode:Support & Contact Simon: https://ratiochristi.co.za/about/our-team/Southern Evangelical Seminary & Bible College - https://ses.edu/frankJD Vance: The Universities Are the Enemy - youtu.be0FR65Cifnhw Should Christians Practice Deliverance Ministries? - youtu.beGZlNiMFncu4 Articles that confirm the entrenchment of Social Justice Theory in South African universities: Decolonisation Necessarily Requires Degendering - https://bit.ly/4dKtuwpQueer Activism in South African Education - https://bit.ly/43DQW9NCorrecting Critical Theory Ideas - https://bit.ly/3ZbAkoK

united states south africa enemy farmers south africans brace murdered marxist marxism crt usaid national director bible college southern evangelical seminary south african education

My Story Talk 19 Ministry in Basingstoke 1968-78 Part 4 Welcome to Talk 19 in our series where I am reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Today I'll be talking about how, while I was at Basingstoke, the Lord started to open up a wider ministry overseas. It all began when early in 1971 Willy Droz, a pastor from Switzerland appeared on my doorstep and introduced himself. He had trained at the International Bible Training Institute in Sussex where he had met his wife Brenda. He knew about me through the SPF newsletter which reported details of my travels around the universities preaching on the baptism in the Holy Spirit. He was organising a youth weekend retreat at les Rasses in the Swiss Jura mountains and asked if I would be the main speaker. I had not been to Switzerland since my first visit in 1958 when I heard about the baptism in the Spirit from Laurie Dixon, and I eagerly accepted the invitation. But I first made sure that they would not expect me to preach in French. There are no less than four different languages spoken in Switzerland, German, French, Italian, and Romansh (spoken only by a small minority). Les Rasses is in the French-speaking area, known also as La Suisse Romande. It was fifteen years since I had taken my French A level and I had forgotten, or thought I had forgotten, all of it. So I was grateful for the assurance that my preaching would be interpreted, which was a particularly interesting experience as I was at least familiar with the language into which I was being interpreted. In some ways it's much easier when you don't know the language and just have to trust the interpreter, but, when you know the language, you're constantly checking to make sure the interpreter is getting it right! And on one occasion I surprised everyone by saying, Non, je n'ai pas dit cela – No, I didn't say that. So the French I had learnt at school had not entirely deserted me, but I have to confess that, when I was introduced to the wife of the pastor from Geneva, I could not even remember how to say, I'm pleased to meet you. It was only when in La Chaux-de-Fonds they lodged me for a few days with an elderly woman who spoke no English, that I was compelled to speak French and found the language coming back to me. But I was far from ready to start preaching in French. The opportunity to do so came three years later in March 1974 as the result of my meeting Jerry Sandidge at an SPF house party at Capel, then the home of the Elim Bible College. Jerry told me he was the director for University Action in Eurasia for the American Assemblies of God, had heard about my ministry in Britain and the USA – about which, more later – and invited me to preach in the University of Louvain (or Leuven) in Belgium on the subject, Charismatic Gifts – are they for today? He also said that he could arrange for me to speak at CBC, the Continental Bible College, later to become the Continental Theological Seminary, near Brussels, where they had two language streams, one in English and the other in French. It was there, I think, that I first met Warren Flattery, who asked if I would mind taking one of his French classes. In French? I asked. Oh no, he said, I always do it in English. To which I responded by politely asking how long he had been living in a French speaking country, and didn't he think he ought to be doing it in French? And so I asked him for a French Bible and, as I had a day or so to prepare for it, after apologising to the class up front for the mistakes I was sure to make, I somehow managed to preach my first sermon in French. At the end of which the class applauded and Warren said, Lui, s'il peut le faire, moi, je peux le faire! If he can do it, I can do it! And the class applauded again, and from then on Warren took all his classes in French. In my case, the applause was certainly not for the quality of my French, but, I suspect, was an expression of sympathy and appreciation that I had made the effort. The next opportunity came in 1977 as a result of my meeting Marie-France, a French student at Mattersey. The Bible College had moved in 1973 from Kenley to Mattersey and in 1976, in the final week of the summer term, I was giving a lecture when I happened to mention that on one occasion in Switzerland I had spoken to someone in French. Marie-France approached me afterwards, pleased to know that there was someone she could speak to in her own language. The outcome of that conversation was that over the next few years Marie-France came to stay with us in Basingstoke on several occasions. She became a good friend of our family and a great help to me in improving my spoken French. Several of my sermons had been recorded on cassettes and Eileen had patiently typed them up, word for word as I had preached them. Marie-France kindly offered to translate them for me, so that I could refer to them whenever I might need to preach in French. The following year, having heard about me from Marie-France, the pastor of her church in Paris invited me to preach whenever I would next be on the continent. So while I was in Brussels for a fortnight writing a course for ICI (International Correspondence Institute, later to become Global University) – more of which later – I travelled to Paris for the weekend and preached one of the sermons Marie-France had translated for me. The French, of course, was excellent, but I can't say the same about the delivery! I was so nervous that I read every word of it! And I did the same the following year when Willy Droz arranged for me to preach in several churches in Switzerland – Vevey, Ste. Croix, Payerne, Lausanne, Saxon, Colenberg, Neuveville, Couvet. I think it was in Vevey that some people came up to me after the service and, after chatting with me, in French of course, for about twenty minutes said, Thank you for your message. It was very good. But why did you read it all? To which I replied that someone had translated it for me and that I did not have enough confidence in my French to do it without reading it. But they replied, You've been speaking with us in perfectly good French for the last 20 minutes. You should trust in the Lord. And I can hardly believe that I made the following stupid reply, Yes, I know how to trust the Lord in English, but I don't know how to trust him in French! But the time did come when occasionally I would have to trust the Lord to help me preach in French without notes, but that's a story for a later talk. It's time now to mention the trips I made to the USA while we were still in Basingstoke. I have already mentioned John Miles who was my closest friend while we were at Oxford. He was part of that group of Pentecostal students who very much took the initiative in the formation of the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship. After graduating John spent a year or so school teaching in England before going to the Congo as a missionary. It was there he met and married Sara, an American missionary and where their first child Julia was born. By 1972 they were back in the USA where John did a PhD in French at the University of Illinois and eventually became Professor of French at Wheaton College. However, at one point they were thinking of returning to Congo and in 1972 John wrote to me saying that, if I was thinking of visiting them in the States, I should do so fairly soon. His letter coincided with one of my regular visits to Kenley Bible College where I met Don Mallough, a guest lecturer from America who, over lunch, asked me if I had ever visited the States and encouraged me to go if I had the opportunity. In those days travelling to the States was far less common than it is today, and to me the decision to go there was far from easy. However, I was talking to Eric Dando, a well-known preacher and member of the AoG Executive Council and asked him what he thought. His reply went something like this: Well, David, I go to America like I go anywhere else. If I feel that I can be a blessing to them and they can be a blessing to me, I go. That put things in perspective for me and on that basis I decided to go, even though at the time I had received no specific invitation to minister anywhere. So I arranged to go for the month of October, and shortly after received an unexpected letter. It was from Jim Hall who had heard about the work I was doing for the SPF in the universities in Britain and asked if I would do something similar in Illinois where he was the Assemblies of God Director for University Action. So that's what I did. Jim arranged preaching engagements for me in churches morning and evening every Sunday and on Wednesday evenings. An offering was taken in each meeting, half of which was designated for the University Action department, the other half for me, to cover the cost of my airfares and a gift for my ministry. This was a complete surprise for me as I had decided to go to the States before I knew of this. It was also a wonderful answer to prayer. We had been struggling financially as the church was not yet able to pay me an adequate salary and any funds we originally had as the result of the sale of our bungalow in Colchester had now run out. But now our needs were met, and I came home with a renewed faith and expectation that God would always find a way to meet our financial needs. But the most satisfying thing about the trip was not the financial reward but the response I received in the churches and universities. I was based at Urbana with John and Sara, and I preached there the first Sunday morning I was there. I preached on repentance and was amazed to see how many people came forward in response to the appeal. I received a similar response everywhere I went, and I quickly learnt how different Americans are from us Brits in responding to an appeal. But for most of the month I was travelling around the state of Illinois accompanied by Jim Hall who acted as my chauffeur and guide and was a great encouragement to me. We learned a lot from each other over the many miles we travelled together and became great friends. We visited eight universities altogether, spending two days in each. These were: Illinois State University, Normal; University of Illinois, Urbana; Northwestern University, Evanston; Northern Illinois University, DeKalb; Western Illinois University, Macomb; Southern Illinois University Edwardsville; Southern Illinois University, Carbondale; and Eastern Illinois University, Charleston. Over the course of the three weeks we were touring, dozens of students were baptised in the Spirit and began to speak in tongues, one professor telling me how grateful he was to God ‘for the wisdom he had given' me in the way I taught the Word and how I prayed for people to receive. And Jim Hall was so encouraged that he sent a report about my ministry to Aaron Linford, the editor of Redemption Tidings, which was published shortly after I returned to England. I made a similar trip to Illinois two years later in October 74, visiting the same universities, but this time speaking on two main themes, The fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and The Christan's Armour (Ephesians 6:10-20). On each of these trips I had left Eileen and the children back in England and we all missed each other very much. For Eileen it was particularly difficult as in 1972 Jonathan was only two, and the girls were just seven and eight. One example of this was when I returned at the end of October 72 and Eileen had driven up to Heathrow with the kids to meet me. During my trip people had asked me about the weather in England and if it was very foggy – I think they must have been watching some of the Sherlock Holmes movies – and I had replied that we occasionally get a bit of fog, but not very much. But ironically, when our flight approached Heathrow, the captain announced that our landing would be delayed because of fog. The delay was so long that we had to go back to Shannon in Ireland to refuel and we eventually landed at Heathrow four and a half hours later than scheduled. And all this time Eileen was waiting with three young children in a very crowded Heathrow. But the third time I went to the States Eileen and the children came with me. This was for six weeks from mid-February to the end of March 1977, and the children had to have special permission to miss school. This was granted on the educational value of the trip and on the condition that whenever possible they went to school in Wheaton, where John and Sara Miles were now living. Most of my ministry during the trip was in churches rather than in universities, although I did speak to students at a breakaway retreat in Carlinville, the headquarters of the Illinois district of Assemblies of God. I also conducted a seminar in Wheaton College on the baptism in the Spirit, more of which in a moment. Once again, the churches we visited were in Illinois. These included Rockford, Urbana, Granite City, Springfield, Naperville, Schaumberg, East Saint Louis (where we took the opportunity to go to the top of the famous arch), and La Grange. The experience at East Saint Louis was interesting for two reasons, first because after the morning service the whole congregation stayed behind for what they called an agapē meal, or love-feast, where they presented a delicious array of both hot and cold dishes. That church was also significant because during the meal the pastor showed me the notes of a sermon he had preached which were almost identical to what I had preached that morning. It was on the subject of team leadership based on the church in Antioch (Acts 13), about which I will say more next time. The Lord was clearly saying the same thing to different people in different parts of the world. Our experience at La Grange was even more interesting. I preached there on the first Sunday of our trip and they invited me back for a series of meetings from Sunday to Wednesday towards the end of our stay when I gave a series of talks on Gideon. We were invited by a family whose children were about the same age as ours for a typical Thanksgiving meal specially prepared for us as it was not really the season for Thanksgiving. It was on the Wednesday before the final service and we really enjoyed it, so much so in fact that we arrived a little late for the service and I was so full I could hardly preach! Even more interesting was the fact that they enjoyed the ministry so much that they asked me if I would seriously consider accepting the pastorate of the church as the pastor had recently announced that he was moving on. The offer was extremely tempting, but, as I will explain later, by this time I was already convinced that the Lord was calling me to Mattersey. Other significant features of that trip included a visit to the Assemblies of God headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, a journey to Tulsa, Oklahoma, at the invitation of Oral Roberts to attend as his guests a seminar at the Oral Roberts University, and finally, a seminar I was asked to conduct at Wheaton College on the baptism in the Holy Spirit on Saturday 19th March. On the Friday evening I had been asked to appear on television by a Christian TV station in Chicago and was on my way there accompanied by Pastor Tom Richardson when he received a phone call to say that they had made a last-minute decision to have instead a telethon evening to raise much needed funds. Although this was disappointing, we had no alternative than to return to Wheaton where the next morning I preached on the baptism in the Spirit and several came forward for prayer and were filled with the Spirit. When the meeting was over, one of them asked me if I had heard Professor James Dunn the previous evening. I said no, at which she expressed some surprise. Dunn, who is well-known for his rejection of the Pentecostal understanding of baptism in the Spirit, had given his reasons for doing so, but I, without knowing what he said, had answered him on every point. This was clearly, without my knowing it, due to the leading of the Holy Spirit in all I had said, and was in itself an evidence of the truth of what I was preaching.

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Chris Ekins on Getting Rejected by Bible College 3 Times, Bible College at 21, Youth Ministry & Coastal Church Planting

Aspire

Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2025 41:06

Chris Ekins is the lead pastor and church planter of Coast EC in Forster, on NSW's Mid-North Coast. We spoke with Chris about his story, but also the themes of:-getting rejected by bible college three times-what bible college was like at 21 -church planting on the mid-north coast -the need for more church planting in Australia.

australia ministry nsw coastal church planting youth ministries forster bible college getting rejected mid north coast

305 My Story Talk 18 Ministry in Basingstoke 1968-78 Part 3

The Pastor's Heart with Dominic Steele

Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2025 17:01

My Story Talk 18 Ministry in Basingstoke 1968-78 Part 3 Welcome to Talk 18 in our series where I am reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Last time we saw how, during the years we were there, the church in Basingstoke grew as a result of the consistent and regular preaching of the gospel by means of Sunday night gospel services, evangelistic missions, personal evangelism and door-to-door work, and ministry among children and young people. And the fact that God graciously confirmed the message by miraculous signs according to his own will was undoubtedly a significant factor as the supernatural gifts of the Spirit were regularly in evidence in our meetings. But our years at Basingstoke also saw a significant widening of my ministry beyond the local church not only in preaching but also in writing, both in the UK and further afield. Ministry beyond the local church Speaking engagements within the UK With the exception of my ministry in universities and colleges as Travelling Secretary of the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship, the vast majority of my speaking engagements were at the AoG Bible College or in AoG churches or conferences. The invitation to lecture at the Bible College, which was then in Kenley, Surrey, came in 1970 from the newly appointed Principal, George Jeffreys Williamson. Kenley was a couple of hours' drive from Basingstoke, and I went on a fortnightly basis staying overnight and giving lectures on the Major Prophets, Comparative Religion, and New Testament Greek. Apart from the Greek, I had little or no prior knowledge about the subjects I was teaching and so the lecture preparation time was considerable. But I enjoyed the challenge and added to my personal education in the process. I could not have possibly known it then, but my time at Kenley turned out to be the start of over fifty years of teaching in Pentecostal Bible Colleges around the world. I was also receiving invitations to minister at large conventions and national conferences. Despite the charismatic renewal that was happening at the time in some of the other churches, Pentecostals, having been rejected and ostracized for decades, were still rather suspicious of what was happening, and tended to keep pretty much to themselves, gathering together in large celebrations, especially at significant times of the year, when there was a public holiday – Easter, Whitsun, August, Christmas and New Year. These were amazing times of blessing as people, hungry for the word of God, gathered for fellowship, worship, and to hear specially invited speakers. Some Easter Conventions, like the Cardiff City Temple (Elim), where I was privileged to minister on more than one occasion, would last from Thursday evening until the following Tuesday, very often with two speakers in each meeting. In the mid-seventies, when I would sometimes be booked for up to five years in advance for Easter, I preached at conventions in Preston (72 and 74), Tunbridge Wells (73), Bishop Aukland (75), Peckham (76), and Coventry (77). Apart from these popular events which were arranged by local churches, there were also national events like the AoG Annual General Conference, attended by thousands, and the Home Missions Conference organised by the AoG Home Missions Council. In 1969 I was asked to speak at the HMC Conference in Coventry on the subject, Preaching the Gospel in the 1970s. And in 1973 at a similar conference in Weymouth, I spoke on the importance of team leadership in the local church, about which I will say more next time. Even more significant, however, was General Conference which in the late sixties took place in Bognor Regis and from 1971 to 1989 was held at the Butlins Holiday Camp in Minehead reaching a record high attendance for the AoG Jubilee Conference in 1984. I was a speaker on one of the main celebrations (back then referred to as ‘rallies') on several occasions, the first of which was in Bognor in 1969. But perhaps the greatest privilege was for many years being made responsible for speaking at the receiving meeting which was held every year for people who were seeking the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Over the years we saw hundreds begin to speak in tongues, some of whom told me that they had been seeking for years but had never heard it explained so clearly. Other events at which I ministered regularly were youth rallies organised either by local churches or by AoG District Councils, and the National Youth Rally. I was a member of the AoG National Youth Council (1973-76), who were responsible for organising this annual event at which I would usually either lead or preach. I suspect that the reason I was elected to the NYC was partly because people had come to know of the work we were doing among young people at our youth camp. That may also have been the reason for the evangelistic missions I was invited to conduct. On two occasions Colin Whittaker, who was then the AoG pastor at Luton, asked me to conduct an eight-day youth mission. For one of these I was assisted by members of the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship who sang and testified in the evening meetings but also did a great job in distributing invitations to the young people as they came out of school. The other time, I was alone, but part of the week's programme was to preach in one of the schools where I was supported by a Christian band and where dozens responded to the appeal at the end of my message. Another time I was asked by the Christian Union at Chester College – now Chester University – to do a five-day evangelistic mission for the students in the college. When I arrived just after lunch on the Monday, a member of staff conducted me to the bedroom they had allocated for me. I hope you don't mind, he said, we're putting you in a room that was occupied until recently by a student we have had to expel from the college. He had been practising witchcraft . I was rather surprised by this, to say the least, but I put a brave face on it and said, as casually as I could, Oh, that's fine. No problem! But when I entered the room, I confess I began to wonder what evil presence might be lurking there. The half-burnt candle on the windowsill didn't help . Had that been part of his devilish paraphernalia? Or had they just had a power -cut recently?! Then I remembered what Jesus had promised to his disciples as he sent them out on the task of world evangelisation: Surely, I will be with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20). I reminded myself of other Bible verses like Behold I give you power over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you (Luke 10:19) and I began to take courage. I settled into my room and started to prepare myself for the meeting at which I had to speak that evening. After a few minutes there was a knock at the door. Two men stood there. They had seen the light on in my room and wondered who it was that was in there. Are you a new student? they asked. No, I replied, I've come to conduct a mission for the Christian Union. That's interesting, said one of them. It's strange they should put you in my old room. It was the man they had expelled for practising witchcraft ! He had come back to visit his friend. Of course, I invited them to the meeting that evening and the ‘witch ' said he might come. And sure enough, when the time for the meeting came, there he was sitting in the audience. I preached the gospel and I would like to be able to say that the man gave his life to Christ, but he didn't. Instead, he came and argued with me! This went on for some time after the meeting had closed, and after about half an hour, feeling that we were getting nowhere by arguing, I decided to invite him to come to the meeting the next day. I think you'll be particularly interested tomorrow, I said. The subject is Jesus the way to power . How real is the supernatural ? Is it safe? I don't think you know the first thing about the supernatural , he replied. What a challenge to a Pentecostal preacher! Well, I don't know much about what you get up to when you practise your witchcraft , I said, but I will tell you one thing. When you come under the control of a familiar spirit , you can't say Jesus is Lord, can you? I don't know who was more surprised, him or me! I had said this on the basis of my understanding of 1 Corinthians 12:1-3, but I was not prepared for the effect it had on this young man. He went visibly pale and said, How did you know that? Taking courage by his reaction, I said, Because the Bible , which is God's word tells me so. And I'll tell you something else it says. You may not acknowledge that Jesus is Lord now, but the day is coming when you will have to, whether you like it or not. For the Bible says that one day at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father ! As I quoted these verses from Philippians 2:10-11 to him, he retreated out of the room! I went to bed at around 11pm and fell asleep straight away, sleeping soundly until about 7 the next morning. While the students were having their breakfast, I went down the corridor to the washroom to shave. While I was shaving, I saw in the mirror the face of the ‘witch '. He was standing right behind me. Good morning, he said. Did you sleep well? Yes, thank you, I replied. Are you sure? Yes, perfectly sure. I went to bed around eleven and slept soundly until about seven. Really? I can't understand that! Why? What so unusual about having a good night's sleep? Well, you see, he confessed, I was so annoyed with what you said last night that I stayed up all night practising my witchcraft . I was trying to get a poltergeist into your room to disturb you. I've done it many times before and it's never failed. That's why they expelled me from the college. I can't understand why it didn't work this time. Oh, I said, I wish you had told me. I could have told you not to waste your time. Don't you know that Christians are immune to such things? Later that day he was seen leaving the college with his bag packed. Leaving? said one of the Christians. Aren't you coming to the meeting today? No, he replied, that fellow knows too much about the supernatural. What a sad story, but despite the satanic opposition, during the course of those five days over 40 students made a decision for Christ. But finally, before we turn to the speaking invitations that began to open up for me overseas, which I'll tell you about next time, a word about those I was receiving from within the UK apart, of course, from the things I've already mentioned – teaching fortnightly at the Bible College, preaching in universities and colleges, serving on the National Youth Council, and ministering at conventions, conferences and missions. In addition to all that, looking back at my diaries I discovered recently that between 1972 and 1976 I was ministering on average over twelve times a year in churches other than Basingstoke. Why do I mention this? Because with that amount of ministry there is always the danger that the family may suffer as a result of it. I am so grateful to Billy Richards who spoke to the ministers in our district about pastors who discovered that their kids had grown up before they knew it and who regretted that they had spent so little time with them. On hearing that, I was determined that that would not happen in our family, and so, whenever I returned from a trip away, Eileen and I would make sure that we all spent extra time together, like going for a drive or walk or picnic in the beautiful Hampshire countryside and followed by a favourite meal for tea. And we made sure that we always had good summer holidays too. Apart from camp, which was a holiday for the kids, but hard, though enjoyable work for Eileen and me, we always tried to make sure that as a family we had two weeks away together. At first these were always in the UK in places like North Wales and Cornwall, but our most notable trip by far was in 1976 when we went to L'Auberson, a small village just a mile from the French border in the Jura region of Switzerland. Back then holidays abroad were far less common and far more expensive than they are today, and such a trip would have been financially impossible for us had it not been for the inheritance Eileen received from her father who had sadly died from a heart attack in 1975. We travelled by car stopping overnight just once en route at a hotel – the children's first experience in one – in La Veuve, a small village near to Chalons-sur-Marne and arrived at L'Auberson early in the evening. Actually it was earlier than we thought. We had put our watches on an hour when we entered France and assumed that the time in Switzerland was the same, but, as we found out later, in those days the time was the same as in England, so when we went to bed at what we thought was nine o'clock, people were rather surprised that we were going to bed at eight! And when we arrived at church the next morning in time for the ten o'clock service the door was still locked because it was really only nine! The pastor was Willy Droz – more about him next time – and I had not told him we were coming and had tried to time our entrance just in time for the service so that he would not ask me to preach. After all I was on holiday! So, of course, I ended up preaching after all – in French. But that brings me to the next subject – speaking engagements abroad, which we'll talk about next time.

‘Not so fast my friend' - 1700 years since Nicaea - with Rachel Ciano and Leonardo Di Chirico

Play Episode Listen Later May 13, 2025 33:09 Transcription Available

It is 1700 years since the council of Nicaea and the publication of the Nicene Creed - but what are we to make of it?It was the twentieth of May in the year 325 that the Council of Nicaea first met. Pope Francis said ‘The Nicene Creed is a powerful sign of unity among Christians.'The 17 hundredth anniversary of the Council of Nicaea - is being used - by the Roman Catholic Church to push the idea that ‘All Christians are Nicene Christians.'However the difficulty is that while we say the same words, Roman Catholics and Protestants mean vastly different things, and any unity is a fake unity at best. Leonardo de Chirico is pastor of the Church Breccia di Roma and director of the Reformanda Initiative.Rachel Ciano lectures in Christianity and History at Sydney Missionary and Bible College. She is a faculty member at the Rome scholars and leaders network, hosted by The Reformanda Initiative.The book ‘The Nicene Creed' is available from Matthias Media.Anglican AidAnglican Aid - To find out more about how to support Anglican Aid.ChurchSuiteCheck out ChurchSuite at Reach Australia or at the Melbourne taster day. The Church Cohttp://www.thechurchco.com is a website and app platform built specifically for churches. Dominic Steele's preaching at Village Subscribe to Dominic Steele's weekly sermons from the Village Church website. Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

The Critical Need for Prayer!

Crosstalk America from VCY America

Play Episode Listen Later May 1, 2025 53:28

It was by a joint resolution of Congress, signed into law by President Harry Truman, that the National Day of Prayer was established to be observed on the first Thursday of May.While having national recognition of prayer is important, what about at the personal level? After all, each of us has the privilege of coming before God in His grace and in the name of His son Jesus Christ, to intercede for our nation, its leaders, churches and families. Unfortunately, such prayer is often relegated to a single day when it should be a vital part of every day. No one knows this better than Evangelist Harold Vaughan. He is founder and president of Christ Life Ministries, Inc. Harold trusted Christ as Savior in his teen years. While in Bible College the Lord called him to enter the ministry as an evangelist. He has a passion for reaching the lost and to encourage the local church.Harold noted that prayer starts in the hearts of people, yet he sees faith-based effective prayer as being at a low ebb in the church at this time. Should we be surprised it's this way when as Harold also pointed out, many churches were not founded as churches of prayer, but rather as houses of preaching, programs, politics or personality. So listen to this broadcast and learn why prayer is such a passion for Harold, what's keeping so many believers from having a regular and effective prayer life, as well as guidance for personal prayer, family prayer, corporate church prayer and showing how this is all to be scripturally driven.

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The Critical Need for Prayer!

Crosstalk America

Play Episode Listen Later May 1, 2025 53:28

god jesus christ lord prayer congress savior national day harry s truman bible college

Episode #105- Robert Smith On The Body God Gives: A Biblical Response to Gender Identity

The Union Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 28, 2025 55:45

In this compelling episode, Bryan sits down with Dr. Robert Smith, lecturer in Theology, Ethics, and Music at Sydney Missionary and Bible College, to discuss his new book The Body God Gives: Biblical Answers on Gender Identity. With clarity, wisdom, and pastoral care, Robert unpacks the biblical foundations for understanding gender and sexuality in a time of cultural confusion.We explore:Why this conversation is vital for the church todayHow pastors can begin engaging these topics with both truth and graceThe tension between conviction and compassion in polarized timesScriptural responses to affirming interpretations of gender identityThe debate around pronoun usage and what true hospitality looks likePractical steps for gospel-centered evangelism among transgender individualsHow Christians can respond to pressure in schools, workplaces, and public lifeWhat the future of this conversation may look like—and how the church can prepareThis episode offers thoughtful, theologically grounded insight for anyone navigating these conversations in ministry, discipleship, or daily life. Whether you're leading a church or having coffee with a friend, this conversation will help you engage with humility, courage, and biblical conviction.Get Your Copy Of “The Body God Gives”

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302 My Story Talk 15 Ministry at Colchester 1962-68 Part 3

SALT - Conversations with Jenny

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 22, 2025 13:20

My Story Talk 15 Ministry at Colchester 1962-68 Part 3 Welcome to Talk 15 in our series where I am reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Today is the final talk about our ministry in Colchester between 1962 and 1968. These were the first few years of our married life and so far I have shared with you about the birth of our first two children, our housing, employment, holidays and transport. We have talked about the growth of the church and the reasons for it, testified to an outstanding miracle, explained how I got to know more about Assemblies of God, and how God called me to give up my teaching job and go into full-time ministry. Today I'll be sharing first how this led me into a wider ministry, and concluding with two important lessons I felt God was beginning to teach me. A wider ministry – the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship If I had thought initially that God's purpose in leading me into full-time ministry was just so that I could give more time to the local church, I was soon to learn otherwise. It certainly did that, but I soon began to receive invitations to preach in churches at weekend conventions, and, more significantly, to speak in Coleford at a National Day School Teachers' Conference on the relevance of the baptism in the Holy Spirit in day school teaching today. It was there I met members of the AoG Home Missions Council and the National Youth Council who, if I remember correctly, had jointly organised the conference. The invitation came, no doubt, not only because I was a pastor who had until recently been a schoolteacher, but also because of my ministry in praying for people to receive the baptism and my role in the Students' Pentecostal Fellowship. I have already mentioned how, while I was at Oxford, I was asked to share my testimony at the AoG National Youth Rally held in the Birmingham Town Hall and to contribute an article in Redemption Tidings entitled Pentecost in Oxford University. So I was by no means unknown in the wider fellowship, and it was probably not surprising that, when Richard Bolt resigned as Travelling Secretary of the SPF, I should be asked to take over his role of visiting colleges and universities, preaching and praying for students to be filled with the Spirit, which of course would not have been possible if I had remained in school teaching. Universities where I conducted meetings on those early SPF travels included Oxford, Cambridge, Leicester, Loughborough, Nottingham, Durham, and Newcastle. Later, after I had left Colchester, I also preached in the University of Louvain (Leuven) in Belgium, and in 1972 in the majority of universities in the state of Illinois. The purpose of all these meetings was to tell people about the baptism in the Spirit, explain why it was biblical, and to pray for them to receive as I laid hands on them at the close of the gathering. Among the many who received were the chaplain of Queen's College, Cambridge, and William Kay a student at Trinity College, Oxford, who had come to Christ at a Billy Graham meeting in London. Valentine Cunningham, a student at Keble College, and the son of an AoG pastor, invited William to a meeting he had organised where I was to preach on the baptism in the Spirit. After he graduated he became a member of my church in Basingstoke, a close friend, a lecturer at Mattersey Hall Bible College, and a university professor who has contributed much to Pentecostal education around the world. Val Cunningham went on to become Professor of English at Oxford and was a great help to me when I wrote Be Filled with the Spirit, a booklet published by the SPF, which proved to be the springboard for my ministry as an author. Other former SPF members who became professors were John Miles and Michael Collins. John, after spending some years as a missionary in Congo became Professor of French at Wheaton, and Michael, after serving as SPF General Secretary, became Professor of Engineering at City University, London. He was succeeded as SPF General Secretary by Andrew Parfitt, who after spending years in school teaching, became an AoG minister, as did Jeff Clarke who received the baptism under my ministry while he was a student at Oxford, and David Littlewood who received while was a student at Essex. It is clear from all this that during the course of my lifetime Pentecostals have moved on from being suspicious of higher education to embracing it and playing an active role within it. This will become even clearer when we consider in a later talk the educational developments in our Bible Colleges. Lessons I learnt at Colchester Of course, I myself had never been to Bible College. And although I had received excellent teaching from my father and from Leslie Moxham, my pastor at Elm Park Baptist, I had received no formal training for ministry, and back then there was no provision in Assemblies of God for supervision from a more experienced minister. So I was very much learning on the job and was conscious of my need for the guidance, help, and the enabling of the Holy Spirit. But my experience at Colchester taught me many lessons. The most significant of these was learning to trust God for our needs after I had relinquished my secular employment, which I have already mentioned. But there were two other areas the importance of which I began to understand more clearly. These were: o the nature of the ministry God had given me o the importance of a balanced theology of healing. The nature of the ministry God had given me In my teens I had been greatly impressed by the ministry of Billy Graham. I had seen thousands of people walk forward in response to his appeals for salvation. Surely this kind of evangelism must be the answer and, when I felt the call to the ministry at the age of 16, I soon began to have dreams of becoming an evangelist. Later, after I was baptised in the Spirit, I came to see the importance of healing in evangelism and, as I have mentioned previously, was greatly influenced by Richard Bolt who was seeing remarkable healings in his evangelistic crusades. And at that time the American Pentecostal evangelist T. L. Osborn had made his books on healing available to students free of charge and I had read them avidly. So I now wanted to be a healing evangelist, a desire which was evident in the two evangelistic and healing missions I conducted at Colchester. And that was why, although I shared with others the responsibility of preaching and teaching on Sunday mornings and midweek Bible Studies, I always did the preaching at the Sunday evening Gospel Service. But when Harold Womersley, veteran missionary of the Congo Evangelisitc Mission visited us on itinerary, he asked me – purely out of interest, I think – about what I was teaching at our Bible Study meetings. And when I told him that, when it was my turn, I just gave whatever word the Lord had put on my heart, he graciously suggested that as the pastor it was my responsibility the feed the flock by regular and systematic teaching of the truths of God's word. This, I think, would have been at about the time that I had given up my school teaching job, and so, taking his words to heart, I set about planning various series of weekly Bible studies, and I discovered that I really enjoyed it and, to my surprise, so did those who came to hear me. It was gradually dawning on me that my primary ministry was not to be evangelism – though I have not been totally unsuccessful in that area – but teaching. Of course, I had no idea then how that teaching gift would eventually be expressed not only in churches, but also as a Bible College principal and as a writer. But that brings me to another closely related lesson I began to learn at Colchester, the importance of a biblically balanced doctrine of healing. The importance of a balanced theology of healing As I mentioned at the beginning of this series, ever since my father told me of the healing of my aunt who had been deaf and dumb from birth, I have always believed that God still works miracles of healing today. I grew up with the belief that everyone could be healed if only they had enough faith and that the lack of miracles today was entirely due to lack of faith. This understanding was confirmed by the teaching of Richard Bolt and the books of T.L.Osborn and was directly related to the doctrine that Jesus died not only for our sins, but for our sicknesses too. We can claim our healing in just the same way as we can claim forgiveness of sins, and all because Jesus died for us. I embraced this teaching wholeheartedly, and that is what I preached. But my experience as a pastor in Colchester didn't always seem to confirm this doctrine. It was great when we saw people healed, but what could I say to those who were not? Did I really have to tell them that the reason they were not healed was lack of faith, or that there must be some unconfessed sin in their life? And whereas this might apply in some cases, it surely was not true of all? I simply could not believe, for example, that when Jack Joliffe was diagnosed with a cancer that first disfigured him and eventually destroyed him, it happened because of lack of faith or some secret sin. I knew him too well. He was a godly man, full of faith, and an elder of our church. It's all too easy for evangelists to preach these doctrines and then move on, while pastors are left with the care of Christians who have not been healed and have been wounded by the teaching that if they are sick it is somehow their fault. But it is not my intention in this talk to repeat what I have already said at length elsewhere. My rejection of this view is comprehensively explained in my Ph.D. thesis, Healing and the Atonement, where I argue that, although there is a sense in which healing may rightly be understood to be in the atonement, it is not true to say that Jesus died for our sicknesses in exactly they same way that he died for our sins. I have also explained this in my book Just a Taste of Heaven – a biblical and balanced approach to God's healing power, which is available from my website www.davidpetts.org. I simply mention it here because it was at Colchester that I began to question what I had previously believed about healing. Of course, we mustn't build our doctrine on our experience, but if our experience doesn't tally with our doctrine it's always good to consider whether we've understood the scriptures correctly. So I was learning important lessons at Colchester which were to stand me in good stead for the next ten years when we would be pastoring the assembly in Basingstoke. Life is a continuing process of learning and sometimes unlearning, and Basingstoke was no exception. Next time I'll begin by telling you how we came to move there.

It's a wrap

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 7, 2025 2:32

After ten seasons of deeply gratifying, inspiring Gospel stories, Amy Townsend brings the Salt Podcast to a close. But Amy has one last recommendation to make. Click on over to listen to the Aspire podcast, brought to you by Sydney Missionary and Bible College students.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Su - 04/06/25 - Dr. Hansen - Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025

Warning with Dr. Jonathan Hansen

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 6, 2025 49:59

Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025 2025/04/06 (Podcast Date) World Ministries International Eagles Saving Nations Dr. Jonathan Hansen - Founder & President Rev. Adalia Hansen worldministries.org Visit our Rumble channel https://rumble.com/c/WarningTVJonathanHansen (360) 629-5248 WMI P.O. Box 277 Stanwood, WA 98292 warning@worldministries.org Visit our website http://www.worldministries.org/ and subscribe to Eagle Saving Nations https://www.worldministries.org/eagles-saving-nations-membership.aspx Sign up for Dr. Hansen's FREE newsletters http://www.worldministries.org/newsletter-signup.html Support Dr. Hansen through your financial gift https://www.worldministries.org/donate.aspx Order Dr. Hansen's book “The Science of Judgment” https://www.store-worldministries.org/the-science-of-judgment.html

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F - 04/04/25 - Dr. Hansen - Part 2 Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025

Warning with Dr. Jonathan Hansen

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2025 27:45

Part 2 Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025 2025/04/04 (Radio Air Date) World Ministries International Eagles Saving Nations Dr. Jonathan Hansen - Founder & President Rev. Adalia Hansen worldministries.org Visit our Rumble channel https://rumble.com/c/WarningTVJonathanHansen (360) 629-5248 WMI P.O. Box 277 Stanwood, WA 98292 warning@worldministries.org Visit our website http://www.worldministries.org/ and subscribe to Eagle Saving Nations https://www.worldministries.org/eagles-saving-nations-membership.aspx Sign up for Dr. Hansen's FREE newsletters http://www.worldministries.org/newsletter-signup.html Support Dr. Hansen through your financial gift https://www.worldministries.org/donate.aspx Order Dr. Hansen's book “The Science of Judgment” https://www.store-worldministries.org/the-science-of-judgment.html

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Th - 04/03/25 - Dr. Hansen - Part 1 Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025

Warning with Dr. Jonathan Hansen

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2025 27:45

Part 1 Loyalty - Kenya Bible College Graduation 02/22/2025 2025/04/03 (Radio Air Date) World Ministries International Eagles Saving Nations Dr. Jonathan Hansen - Founder & President Rev. Adalia Hansen worldministries.org Visit our Rumble channel https://rumble.com/c/WarningTVJonathanHansen (360) 629-5248 WMI P.O. Box 277 Stanwood, WA 98292 warning@worldministries.org Visit our website http://www.worldministries.org/ and subscribe to Eagle Saving Nations https://www.worldministries.org/eagles-saving-nations-membership.aspx Sign up for Dr. Hansen's FREE newsletters http://www.worldministries.org/newsletter-signup.html Support Dr. Hansen through your financial gift https://www.worldministries.org/donate.aspx Order Dr. Hansen's book “The Science of Judgment” https://www.store-worldministries.org/the-science-of-judgment.html

science kenya judgment loyalty wa rumble hansen bible college college graduation

299 My Story Talk 12 Brasenose College Oxford Part 3

First Person with Wayne Shepherd

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 28, 2025 18:14

My Story Talk 12 Brasenose College Oxford 1959-62 (Part 3) Welcome to Talk 12 in our series where I am reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. This is now the third talk about the years I spent at Oxford. So far we have talked about life at Oxford, its academic programme, and my spiritual experience while I was there. Today I'm going to share with you my developing relationship with Eileen, our decision to get married shortly after I graduated, and how the Lord led us straight into pastoral ministry rather than going to Bible college first. Keeping in touch Throughout the two years after Eileen and I met, we had seen each other almost every day. Clearly, this could not continue while I was at Oxford, but we kept in touch as much as was then humanly possible. Of course, in those days there were no mobile phones. In fact, access to landlines was not easy, and anyway, it was extremely expensive. So Eileen and I kept in touch with each other by writing letters four or five times a week. We also managed to see each other every two weeks. As I have mentioned already, the terms at Oxford were only 8 weeks long, so by going home for the weekend after four weeks, and by Eileen travelling up to see me for the weekend after weeks two and six, we were able to see each other on a fortnightly basis. This was very clear evidence of Eileen's commitment to me as the journey on our Lambretta scooter through the busy traffic of central London was by no means easy. Obviously, we made the most of those precious weekends. On Saturdays we would often explore the surrounding countryside on our scooter or even travel further afield visiting pretty Cotswold villages like Bibury and Bourton on the Water. Or in the summer we loved getting into one of the punts moored by Magaden Bridge and heading up the Cherwell where we picnicked on the home-made sausage rolls and egg and bacon pie that Eileen had brought with her from home. On Sundays, of course, we went to church together before Eileen made the 60-mile journey back home to be ready for work on Monday. Of course, during the college vacations (which totalled half the year), the situation was completely different. I was able to see Eileen every day again. During the week, this was in the evenings as Eileen was at work during the daytime. And I was too, at least during the weeks that the schools had their holidays. As the Oxford terms were far shorter than the school terms I was able to earn some extra money by teaching in a local secondary school, which was to prove valuable for my future ministry as I was gaining experience in teaching children of a different age group from those I had taught in the years before I went to Oxford. But apart from working hours, Eileen and I saw each other every evening and every weekend. Sundays were taken up with church twice in the day, and midweek we regularly attended the Tuesday night prayer meeting, the Thursday night Bible study, and the Friday night youth meeting. We were desperate to learn more about our Pentecostal experience and the way the Pentecostal churches did things. In fact, whatever we were doing, our relationship with each other was from the start intimately connected with our relationship with the Lord and his will for our lives, even when we went on holiday. As I have already mentioned, our first holiday together was at a Christian Endeavour Holiday Home in Devon in 1959 just before I went up to Oxford. The following year we decided to explore the Lake District together. We travelled the three-hundred-mile journey on our scooter, stopping overnight in Aintree with one of Eileen's aunts, before finally arriving at a CE Home in Kents Bank near Grange-over-Sands. We had each visited the area before, but never together, and that fortnight was a wonderful opportunity to enjoy fellowship with other Christians as well as marvelling at the beauty of God's creation as we made daily trips into different parts of the Lakes. In 1961 we decided to go further afield and to spend four weeks touring France and northern Spain. So we exchanged our 125cc Lambretta for a new 175 which we trusted would cope well with the distances we would be travelling laden with two tents and all the paraphernalia required for camping. However, the moment we set off we both had some misgivings as the weight of luggage at the rear of the scooter made it harder to handle the machine safely, but undaunted we proceeded with caution and arrived safely at Southend airport where we had booked a flight on a cargo plane to northern France. Our first night in France was spent in a cow field with the kind permission of the farmer. We were both experienced campers, Eileen with the Girl Guides and I with the Boys' Brigade, but we had never before been woken by the sound of cows champing round our tent pegs and we quickly agreed to depart as soon as possible, particularly as there were no ‘facilities' available! We determined that after that we would make sure to check into proper camping sites. We travelled down the western side of France, stopping first at Paris for the weekend, camping in the Bois de Boulogne and visiting the thousand-strong Assemblies of God Church in the Rue du Sentier led by pastor André Nicole. Little did I know it then, but that was to be the first of many visits to French assemblies later in my ministry and sparked my interest in what the Holy Spirit was doing in European countries. In Angouleme we discovered that our GB plate had fallen off and, knowing that we were legally required to display one, we visited a garage there and asked if they knew where we could get a replacement. It was then that I realised how inadequate my A Level French course had been. Although we had studied numerous French authors, it was of little practical use to us now as no one had told us how to say the alphabet in French! Finally, by writing the letters down I managed to let them know what I wanted and learnt that in French GB is pronounced Jay-Bay. They told us that they could make us one, but it would take a couple of days. As a result, we had to travel further each day than originally planned which meant that we were both rather saddle-sore at the end of each day. We crossed the Spanish border between Biarritz and San Sebastian and immediately discovered that what we were doing was culturally unacceptable. Eileen was getting hoots and wolf-whistles from passing motorists because she was wearing trousers and not riding side-saddle! Of course, this would have been extremely dangerous bearing in mind the distances we were travelling each day and, at the risk of causing offense, we decided that we had no option but to carry on as we were. Extremely tired when we reached Burgos we decided to spend the night in a hotel and enjoy the luxury of proper beds. We did the same in Madrid for two or three nights before heading for Barcelona by way of Zaragoza. But before we reached Barcelona our scooter broke down on a mountain road and reluctantly I had to leave Eileen by the roadside with the scooter while I hitched a lift in a Citroen deux-chevaux into a village called Jorba to get help. It took two days to get the scooter fixed and by the time we eventually reached our campsite at Rosas, on the Mediterranean just north of Barcelona, it was already dark. A day or so later we arrived in Perpignan in southern France, intending to travel on up the eastern side of France on our way back home. But the scooter broke down again, and after two days camping at the back of an Esso station, we were compelled to return to England by train, leaving our scooter to be brought home courtesy of the RAC. Fortunately, it was still under warranty and was repaired by Lambretta after it finally arrived back in England some six weeks later. That holiday was the last we were to have together before we were married the following year and, in some ways, was a preparation for it. Like the holiday, married life is wonderful, but not without its unexpected events, delays, and difficulties. We were learning to face problems together, to be patient with each other, and to trust in the Lord to bring us through. Perhaps that's why I tend to advise young couples, wherever possible, to go on holiday together before deciding to get married. But that brings me to how I decided to propose to Eileen. Engagement and Marriage It was during my first term at Oxford. We had been ‘going out' together for two years, seeing each other almost every day. But we had never talked about marriage. I think that must have been because I was very conscious of how serious marriage is. Divorce in those days was far less common than it is today and for me, as a Christian, it would not have entered my head. I knew that marriage would be for life. What's more, I knew God had called me to serve him, and choosing the right partner was vitally important. So I was reluctant to commit myself. But just before I went to Oxford my father had a word with me. You'd better make your mind up about that girl, David. It would not be fair to keep her waiting for three years while you're at Oxford, if your intentions are not serious. Of course, I knew he was right. I had to make up my mind. The problem was, I didn't want to give her up, but I didn't want to marry her if she wasn't the right one for me. Finally I did what I should have done much sooner. I decided to pray about it. I got down on my knees in my bedroom at Oxford and told the Lord my dilemma. I told him that I would gladly marry Eileen if she was God's choice for me, but if not, I would give her up. And as soon as I said that prayer I received an overwhelming peace and an assurance that Eileen was the girl I was to marry. So, the next time I was home from Oxford, after a long and passionate kiss, I said to her, You will marry me, won't you, darling? Yes, those were my exact words! To which she replied, Oh yes! Of course I will. So we decided to get engaged the following summer after my first year at Oxford, knowing that the earliest we could expect to marry would be after I had graduated. After gaining her father's consent, we organised a wonderful garden party to celebrate our engagement on 2nd July, 1960, and eventually were married by Pastor Alfred Webb at Bethel Full Gospel Church, Vicarage Road, Dagenham, on 28th July, 1962. And the specially invited organist for the occasion was none other than Laurie N. Dixon, LRAM, the friend through whom I had first heard about the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Our move to Colchester After our honeymoon in Cornwall, we moved directly into our first home, a bungalow in Colchester, where I had accepted the invitation to take over the pastorate of the small AoG church there. Colchester will be the subject of our next talk, but first I need to explain why we did not consider ministry in a Baptist church and why I did not go to Bible College as originally planned. With regard to the Baptists, the explanation is simple. Once we had been baptised in the Spirit, neither of us had attended our Baptist churches apart from perhaps an occasional visit. This was largely because the minister of Hornchurch Baptist was not sympathetic to a Pentecostal understanding of scripture, and the new minister of Elm Park Baptist had stated that the Pentecostals' exegesis of Acts was entirely unwarranted. Against this, my parents had told me that Leslie Moxham, our former Baptist minister at Elm Park, had noticed such a difference in me since I was baptised in the Spirit that he had said, If the baptism in the Spirit can make that much difference to David, I want it too. Leslie was later baptised in the Spirit and eventually became an AoG minister working with my friend Colin Blackman in the Tunbridge Wells assembly. And although, as we were to discover later some Baptists were beginning to get involved in the Charismatic Renewal, it was evident to us that our future lay with the Pentecostals rather than with the Baptists. But why didn't I go the Bible College before taking on a church? The answer is that I tried to. Early in 1962 I applied to London Bible College. There was a section on the application form where you were required to give an account of your experience of Christ. So I mentioned not only how I had become a Christian, but also how Jesus had baptised me in the Holy Spirit. My interview lasted about an hour, most of which was taken up with what I believed about speaking in tongues. Was it for today? And if it was, was it for everyone? As a result, I received a letter a few days later saying that they felt I would do better to apply to a Pentecostal bible college! Interestingly, their rejection of my application is mentioned in Ian Randall's history of LBC, Educating Evangelicals. The AoG Bible College was then at Kenley in Surrey. Its principal was Donald Gee. I had had a brief conversation with him after a meeting at the East Ham Easter Convention, and he had promised to send me the application form. But this never arrived. I also heard it rumoured that the lady teaching English at Kenley, on hearing that an Oxford graduate might be coming, had, presumably jokingly, commented that he'll be probably teaching me! This, together with the fact that some of my Pentecostal friends were telling me that I didn't need to go to Bible college, because I had got it – whatever that meant! – caused me to wonder if that was the direction I should be heading. So I said to the Lord, If you really don't want me to go to Bible College, let someone offer me the pastorate of a Pentecostal church. And within a week, I had my answer. I received a letter from the Colchester assembly asking if I would be their pastor. There was a bungalow available for rent for six and a half guineas a week (£6.51) towards which they were prepared to contribute £5.00. Apart from that, they could offer nothing, and it was understood that I would need to seek full time secular employment. But that's something for next time.

Mark Jobe

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 27, 2025 23:59

He's both a pastor and a president. Mark Jobe, President of the Moody Bible Institute, talks with Wayne Shepherd about his dual calling as both a pastor and the leader of a Bible College. (Click for more) Dr. Mark Jobe serves as Moody Bible Institute's 10th president, taking office on Jan. 2, 2019. He and his wife, Dee, have been married 32 years and have three adult children, Marissa, Josiah, and Grant. The Jobes currently reside in Chicagoland area where they are active members of New Life Community Church, a nondenominational, multisite church where Dr. Jobe has served as senior pastor since 1986. Mark is the Bible teacher on the program Bold Steps, with Wayne Shepherd as co-host. NEXT WEEK: Wayne KunaSend your support for FIRST PERSON to the Far East Broadcasting Company:FEBC National Processing Center Far East Broadcasting CompanyP.O. Box 6020 Albert Lea, MN 56007Please mention FIRST PERSON when you give. Thank you!

president bible chicagoland first person bible college jobe moody bible institute new life community church albert lea jobes mark jobe wayne shepherd

The Ultimate Giver

Thought For Today

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 25, 2025 3:42

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 25th of March, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in 2 Corinthians 9:8:”And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” We're talking about sowing seed, good seed. The Lord says that we must be cheerful givers. You don't give to the Lord reluctantly. He doesn't want your money or your effort if it burdens you. He wants you to give cheerfully and He also wants you to give bountifully. Now, any farmer will tell you that if you sow your seed in the ground bountifully, you will reap a bountiful crop, but if you hold back on your seed and you sow it sparingly, you will reap a very average to poor crop.Young farmers, I want to tell you something, when the going gets tough and it does, the one thing you don't hold back on is your seed. You always plant the best seed you can buy and you always plant generously. You know, if you have to cut back, rather cut back on your fertiliser, rather cut back on your land preparation, rather cut back on your spraying program but never, ever cut back on your seed. If you start sowing sparingly, you're going to reap sparingly. If you start sowing inferior seed the chances are you'll get a poor crop but if you sow generously, you'll reap generously. The Lord also likes a consistent giver. Farmers, you can't go for it and then pull back, then go for it again. You'll end up with nothing. If you're going to go for it, put everything in that you can and expect a good return and you'll get it and be a cheerful giver. It's a blessing to give to people isn't it. I love giving to people. I love to see the smile on their face when I give them one of my little Snowy books. Those little children's faces light up. It is such a privilege and such an honour.This Scripture is a particularly special scripture for Jill and I. When we got saved, I was going to give the farm away. That's right. I was going to Bible College, I was going to become a pastor but I said to Jill, "I'm going to pray about it.“ I went up the mountains and I fasted and prayed. I came back and God gave me this Scripture, but listen to this! Jill was having her own quiet time and God gave her the exact same Scripture. So we kept the farm and we have sowed and I think we have been more successful than if I'd given the farm away because we've used the farm for the Gospel. Remember, Jesus was given to us by our Father in Heaven. He is the ultimate giver. He gave us His only beloved Son. Jesus bless you and goodbye.

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Episode 57: A Prodigal's Return

One Broken Life

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 10, 2025 34:28

In this episode of ONE BROKEN LIFE, John Stroup talks with Kenny. Raised in a Christian home, Kenny knew right from wrong. His father was enrolled in Bible College, but he was determined not to live how he knew he should. Listen to this great podcast about how Kenny was at his lowest before he allowed God to completely transform his life. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvb-NnMTgcAITfNM20pF2KQ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4F3b9TcG5BDSkfTK0UwCap Amazon: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/35e83628-c4da-4309-bd0d-2e03cd2a391d/one-broken-life Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/one-broken-life-real-people-real-discussion/id1569230320 Podbean: https://media3r.podbean.com Soundstripe License Code: ZSJCFVTHJUP4QQNC For more information: www.freeway-ministries.com Follow One Broken Life on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/OneBrokenLifePodcast Follow Freeway Ministries on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/freewayministries ONE BROKEN LIFE is a production of Freeway Ministries in Springfield Missouri. It is a series of unique conversations exploring what God can do through ONE BROKEN LIFE. Throughout this podcast, you will hear the stories of real life transformations from those who have been restored from the pit of life. Throughout the discussion, John Stroup will dig deeper into the lives of people who have been broken and radically redeemed by God's grace.

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3/6/25 | The Message that Pastor Jon preached at Faith Bible College International Chapel Service.

His Church

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2025 27:15

Support the show

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#319: Richard Matthews - From Bible College to Business Mogul: Richard's Journey

Wealthy Wellthy Wise

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 3, 2025 49:46 Transcription Available

Watch & Subscribe on YouTubeAre you an entrepreneur struggling to find your unique edge in a crowded market? Richard Matthews' journey from a curious 9-year-old to a successful business owner might just inspire you.In this episode of the Wealthy Wellthy podcast, Krisstina Wise interviews Richard Matthews, founder of Push Button Podcast. Richard shares his fascinating entrepreneurial journey, from selling candy at school to running a podcast production company that's on track to hit seven figures.The main focus of the conversation is Richard's unique approach to entrepreneurship, which he calls "skill stacking." He explains how combining different skills at an 80% proficiency level can lead to a unique and unbeatable business proposition. Richard's story illustrates how curiosity, continuous learning, and a willingness to take risks can lead to extraordinary success.Throughout the episode, Richard and Krisstina discuss various topics, including the power of storytelling in business, the importance of mentorship, and the mindset required for true entrepreneurial success. Richard also shares insights on balancing business growth with personal life, as he runs his company while traveling full-time in an RV with his family.If you're looking for inspiration to take your entrepreneurial journey to the next level, don't miss this episode. Listen now to discover how you can leverage your unique skills and experiences to create a business that's truly uncompetable.Wealth Mastery 1/2 Day Challenge:During the Wealth Mastery Workshop you'll discover a simple, proven system to break free from money stress, build financial security, and create financial freedom. By the end, you'll have the clarity, confidence, and tools you need to develop the mindset, relationship, and system to create financial freedom.https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/WCNpK5YCRWWY2P6zAqiGfgKey Takeaways3:02 Charles Bird: Super connector and mastermind9:52 Developing the Digital Alchemy Formula22:47 The curious mind of an entrepreneur34:45 AI and structure in podcast production46:49 Living a life worth telling a story aboutMemorable Quotes"Entrepreneurship is not a world for the faint of heart. It's a roller coaster and you're never doing the same thing twice. Sometimes you have no money, sometimes you're making a lot. You've got to blaze the trail yourself pretty much all the time.""Figure out what's your superpower. What's the thing that makes you you? It's a useful exercise to determine what you're the best at in the world, and then build your business around that superpower.""Live a life worth telling a story about. Take the risk that you're worried about. Entrepreneurs and people who really get the most out of this world jump off the cliff and build the parachute on the way down."Resources MentionedRich Dad Poor Dad - https://www.amazon.com/Rich-Dad-Poor-Teach-Middle/dp/1612680194How to Fail at Everything and Still Win Big - https://www.amazon.com/How-Fail-Almost-Everything-Still/dp/1591847745Connect with RichardLinkedIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardwmatthews/Connect with...

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ELIM Bible College Zero In Caboose Podcast

Caboose Ministries Audio Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 2, 2025 75:24

Michael Guertin Interview

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Episode 7 - I Can't Meet the Baby, I'm Busy

Stoner Dad

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2025 47:44

This week, we find out that Brian just became an uncle and he's too busy to meet the baby. Frank breaks down how he was catfished and went to Bible College. The guys answer more of Cory's questions about life, parents, lessons learned, what we value most, and the proper place to keep a wallet. We learn that Cory has a crazily overstocked pantry and Frank buys peanut butter by the bucket!! Go to TheBriansWorld.com for all links and to subscribe to our Patreon! #BriansWorld #BrianBeaudoin #FrankGazerro #CoryGee #StandupComedy #Catfish #BibleCollege #Parenting #Kids

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2025 Asia Bible College Class 9

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 11, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 11, 2025

Does a Chaplain Need a Degree? The Mailbag (w/ Kaleb Sackett)

Hey Chaplain

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2025 20:24

Text a Message to the ShowIt's mailbag time!Use the link above to leave a comment or a question and we might use it on a future show!Music is by PineApple MusicHey Chaplain Update Episode 1Q 2025Tags:Chaplaincy, Bible College, Chaplains, Clinical Pastoral Education, CPE, Education, Law Enforcement, Mail, Preparation, Seminary, Theology, Training, Kansas City, KansasSupport the showThanks for Listening! And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOY Email us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

2025 Asia Bible College Class 7

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 10, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 8

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 10, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 6

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 9, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 9, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 4

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 8, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 8, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 5

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 8, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 8, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 3

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 7, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 2

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 7, 2025

2025 Asia Bible College Class 1

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2025

Message from Gene Cunningham on February 7, 2025