The devil forces his way into your circumstances. Radical warriors force him out, in the name of Jesus! (U.S. Navy photo/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gabrielle Joyner/Released)
“I am raising up radical spiritual warriors who will operate in radical obedience and press past radical enemy assignments against radical breakthrough.” That’s one line from prophetic word the Lord recently shared with my heart.
Your enemy is radical. He goes to extreme measures to fulfill his part of John 10:10, to steal, kill and destroy. As Matthew 11:12 (NKJV) says, “The kingdom of God suffers violence and the violent take it by force.” The devil has forces his way into your circumstances. Radical warriors force him out, in the name of Jesus!
It’s time to get radical. Over the next few weeks, I’ll share 7 earmarks of radical spiritual warriors. The first earmark is a radical faith mindset.
Do You See Through the Eyes of Faith or Fear?
When Moses was leading Israel, he sent spies into the Promised Land to scope it out. Numbers 13:26-29 recounts the scene:
And they returned and came to Moses and to Aaron and to all the assembly of the children of Israel, to the Wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh, and brought back word to them and to the entire assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. They reported to him and said, “We came to the land where you sent us, and surely it flows with milk and honey, and this is the fruit of it. However, the people are strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are fortified and very great, and also we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negev, and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains, and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and by the edge of the Jordan.
Now, that’s a radical fear mindset! Joshua and Caleb, by contrast, demonstrated a radical faith mindset in Verse 30: “Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, ‘Let us go up at once and possess it, for we are able to overcome it.'”
In Verse 31-33, we see a wrestling match between faith and fear.
But the men that went up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people because they are stronger than we.” They gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come from the giants, and in our eyes we were like grasshoppers, and so we were in their eyes.”
Fear Wants You to Abort God’s Promises
The 10 spies testified that the promised land was just as God had said. It was a land flowing with milk and honey—with provision. All they had to do was dispossess the former occupants and take up residence. But fear caused them to see themselves as unable. The Bible says they refused to enter the promised land. They were well able, but they refused.
Joshua and Caleb tried to reason with their brothers in Numbers 14:9: “Do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land becausethey are bread for us. Their defense is gone from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.”
Joshua and Caleb were radical. God said of Caleb he had a different spirit. He had a spirit of radical faith—and so do you. God has given you a measure of faith. Technically, you have all the faith you need right now to blast fear out of your way and obtain your promise. Many times, though, weariness from walking in the wilderness sets in and our faith grows weak.
Developing a Radical Faith Mindset
We need to intentionally develop radical faith by radical consumption of the Word of God. The Bible clearly says “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17).
Too many believers are on a Word diet or a Word fast when they need to feast on the Word and fast a few meals, fast some TV, fast some gossip. When I walk through battles against God’s promises in my life, I feed my spirit with the Word of God in any form I can find. I find specific verses, specific teachings and specific worship music that inspires faith in my heart.
Pray this prayer: Lord, I repent of seeing through the eyes of fear when you’ve given me the measure of faith. Forgive me for allowing the enemy to force is way into my life with his fear, unbelief and doubt. Father, help me to rise up with the measure of faith you’ve given me—that faith that moves mountains—and take the land you have allotted for me, in Jesus’ name!
Check out Jennifer’s brand-new Charisma House book, The Spiritual Warfare Battle Plan: Unmasking 15 Harassing Demons That Want to Destroy Your Life.
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(Photo: Reuters/Agencja Gazeta/Jacek Smoter)An image of Pope John Paul II is projected during a multimedia show a night before his canonization, in Krakow, Poland, April 26, 2014.
Christianity has an extensive and detailed history, with numerous events of lasting significance occurring throughout the ages.
Each week brings the anniversaries of notable milestones, tragedies, triumphs, and other events that have helped shape the world of today.
Here are just a few things that happened this week, Oct. 15-21, in Church history. They include the election of a famous pope, the completion of a prominent cathedral, and the destruction of a holy site.
Once you know the truth, you’ll be shocked you believed anything different. (Pixabay)
Have you ever noticed that most Christians think they are pretty decent people? You know, we have all those “good” things to our credit: going to church, tithing, giving offerings, teaching Sunday school. How could anyone think we are anything but wonderful?
I used to have this perspective about myself—until God gave me a revelation of my true nature. A few years ago, I could have enumerated several adjectives that I thought described me: loving, hardworking, honest, trustworthy. Now I know without a doubt that “in my flesh dwell[s] no good thing” (Rom. 7:18, KJV).
Like many believers, I was deceived. I thought my own efforts to live the Scriptures were keeping me straight. I didn’t realize that without God’s grace, I would be numbered among the worst of sinners.
One day at a birthday celebration I requested prayer, asking my friends to agree with me for a deeper revelation of God’s love. Much to my surprise, one of my friends prayed, “God, give her revelation of her sinfulness.”
That was not what I had been hoping for. I was asking God for a supernatural embrace—you know, one of those, “Jesus appeared in my room last night” types of experiences. I couldn’t see how acknowledging my own sinfulness fit in with that picture. Besides, I didn’t think I was that sinful!
A week later, I went to a friend’s house to use some of her reference books for research. While there, I did something—more out of idle curiosity than for any other reason—that constituted a serious invasion of her privacy. At first I wasn’t conscious of the magnitude of my trespass, but within moments the Holy Spirit overpowered me with conviction.
Never before or since have I had such an experience! My entire body from head to foot was consumed with holy fire, an intense inner heat almost impossible to bear. I was literally burning with shame.
Needless to say, I repented immediately. In the grip of that holy fire, I had no choice! But the lesson I learned went beyond promising “not to do it again.”
I saw that in myself, I had no personal integrity at all. I was not honest or trustworthy. Instead I was a product of my own sin nature, and without God’s grace, I would be lost. It was this grace alone that had given me the appearance of being “good.”
Suddenly, my friend’s birthday prayer made sense. There was no better way for God to increase my understanding of His great love for me than for Him to reveal my fallen nature—and remind me that in spite of it, Christ had given His life for me.
What extravagant love! The Bible tells us, “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:7-8, NIV).
I am not a “good” person; neither are you. But God loves us, anyway. And as we continue to acknowledge our true condition, He will ensure that by His grace—not by our own efforts –we are transformed into the image of His Son.
Prayer Power for the Week of Oct. 8, 2017
In the wake of last week’s mass murders in Las Vegas, pray for those who suffered loss of loved ones, survivors, and those working around the clock to save lives and re-establish security. Continue to pray for our president as he faces the multiple challenges of the office. Ask God to give him wisdom and surround him with godly counsel. Remember those recovering from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria and Nate as well as those in the gulf states bracing themselves for another storm. Continue to pray that revival fire would ignite in our nation, and bring salvation, restoration, love and unity. 2 Chron. 7:14
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I felt in my spirit so grieved to feel how it seemed to signify such a deep fatal crack in the true liberty and freedom of our nation. (National Park Service Photo/Public Domain)
Recently I was revisited with a vision I had of our nation in 1996. Out of nowhere came a vision of the Liberty Bell. My attention was naturally drawn to the crack in the bell. I felt in my spirit so grieved to feel how it seemed to signify such a deep fatal crack in the true liberty and freedom of our nation. Could that breach ever be repaired?
Why wasn’t at least the physical defect of the bell ever filled in with more metal? Would the bell’s scar be prophetic, representing our nation’s fatal epitaph—unchangeable like the Grand Canyon engraved into Arizona’s landscape? If only the crack were not there. I felt mesmerized by it. For the longest time my eyes could not move, nor could my eyelids even blink.
Suddenly, Like a Dam Bursting
Then suddenly, as in a twinkling of an eye, the brightest light pierced through that crack like a dam bursting. My head immediately turned away from the brightness emanating out of that crack. Instantly I had a knowing that this was the very shekinah glory of God.
From the Intercessions of God’s People
Looking away from its brightness, I saw a large rope that was attached to the bell. This rope was intertwined and braided. It seemed to be made out of the prayers and intercessions of God’s people. The hand of the Lord began to reach down toward this rope to get a hold of it.
The Lord then spoke, “This Liberty Bell is going to ring again.”
I then remembered the words inscribed on that Bell: “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.” It was now a rhema word from God.
In the Spirit, I had a knowing that the Liberty Bell would be heard again spiritually throughout Philadelphia and across the nation. And with the sound of liberty, the shekinah glory of God would begin to rise up out of obscurity and be seen even in the gross dark places of our nation. Concerning this vision, the Lord spoke, “Have My people forgotten that all things are possible?”
Tradition holds that the Bell cracked while it was being rung during a funeral service in memory of a sheriff. Prophetically, it will ring again for the life and the glory of a King who still lives in our land.
Can you hear the bell ringing?
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Civilians evacuate from the scene of an explosion in KM4 street in the Hodan district of Mogadishu, Somalia Oct. 14, 2017. (Reuters/Feisal Omar)
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Editor’s Note: Somalia authorities and hospital sources have since confirmed that the death toll has risen to 189 since the writing of this story.
The death toll from twin bomb blasts that struck busy junctions in the heart of Somalia’s capital Mogadishu has jumped to 85, making it one of the deadliest attacks since an Islamist insurgency began in 2007.
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo declared three days of national mourning and called for donations of blood and funds to victims of Saturday’s attack. At least 100 others were wounded.
Police said a truck bomb exploded outside a hotel in the K5 intersection that is lined with government offices, restaurants and kiosks, flattening several buildings and setting dozens of vehicles on fire.
Two hours later, another blast struck the capital’s Medina district.
“The number of dead has risen to 85. We know some 100 who were injured,” Mohamed Hussein, a police official, told Reuters, giving combined figures of casualties. He said the toll was likely to rise. Police previously said 22 people had died.
On Sunday, police and emergency workers searched the rubble of destroyed buildings. They also recovered dozens of corpses the night before, most of which were charred beyond recognition.
Hundreds of people came to the junction in search of missing family members and police cordoned off the area for security reasons.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although the Islamist militant group al Shabaab, which is allied to al Qaeda, stages regular attacks in the capital and other parts of the country.
The group is waging an insurgency against the U.N.-backed government and its African Union allies in a bid to topple the weak administration and impose its own strict interpretation of Islam.
The militants controlled Mogadishu between 2007 and 2011 but withdrew as fighting raged. African Union peacekeepers also drove them out of most other territory they controlled.
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Nigel Williams from Southampton said he would be prepared to do work for Joanne Lockwood, but refused to do work for her business, SEE Change Happen.
According to the business’s website, it specialises on “equality, diversity and inclusion advice and services to organisations and business” with its primary focus is on LGBT+ support.
The Christian Institute, which is supporting Williams, said he and Joanne Lockwood met for the first time at a weekly business event on 5th September, in which Williams spoke to attendees about his Christian faith.
The charity said the two met for the second time at the same business event on 26th September and later that day, Williams received an email from Lockwood enquiring about a possible order for a “business venture promoting a particular model of diversity”.
Williams declined her request via email because he did not want to promote a cause which he believes may marginalise Christians.
According to The Times, Lockwood has been living as a trans woman since January and was “gobsmacked” at his reply.
She told the paper: “I was not expecting a lecture. I disbelieved this could happen in 2017. I have been distraught and cried and my wife consoled me.”
A spokesman for the Christian Institute said: “For years we’ve warned of growing hostility towards people with mainstream Christian views. The terms ‘equality’, ‘diversity’ and ‘tolerance’ have been twisted out of all recognition in an attempt to marginalise, shame and punish Christian people.
“Nigel Williams made it crystal clear that he would be prepared to do work for Jo Lockwood. Indeed, his email said: ‘I am very happy to print for you’. However, he was not prepared to do work for a business that actively promoted a cause which might impact negatively on those with a Christian faith’ ”.
The Christian Institute has called this situation “chilling” and “unnecessary”.
The charity pointed out that the dispute is similar to that of Christian-owned Ashers Baking Co., which went to court after declining to decorate a cake with a pro same-sex marriage campaign slogan.
Aidan O’Neill, leading barrister for the case, said such disputes open “the floodgates” for more, citing a Christian baker refusing to take an order to make a cake celebrating Satanism, and a printing company run by Roman Catholics declining an order to produce adverts calling for abortion on demand to be legalised.
He said: “It is a fundamental tenet of free speech and freedom of belief that people should not be forced to help promote causes flatly contrary to their own deeply-held views.”
Premier has asked SEE Change Happen for a comment.
Do you feel like you’re walking through the valley of the shadow of death? (Pixabay/DanielReche)
Do you feel like you’re walking through the valley of the shadow of death? It can feel like the loneliest and scariest place. I know that valley well. I’ve walked through it in different seasons of life, and I’ve learned that it’s something we’re supposed to do just that in—walk. We’re supposed to walk until we’re out of it.
I learned this the hard way in a season right after Kathy and I got married. I made the mistake of camping out in the valley for three years, not because I wanted to, but because I had been taught that Christians could not be demonized. This teaching set me up to war against my flesh instead of the spirits that were attacking me every day. The truth is that the spiritual realm is real, and angels and demons are very active on the earth, whether we see them or not.
My Story of Hell on Earth
While Kathy was fighting her way through her pregnancy, I was carrying tons of responsibility at the shop. I worked 12 hours a day, six days a week and rarely stopped to eat lunch. Consequently, my diet consisted mostly of candy bars, Coke and potato chips. One night, exhausted from a long, hard week of work, I got in the bathtub to relax my tired body while Kathy lay sick on the sofa. As I started to get out of the tub to dry off an intense thought hit me: I am going to die.
Like everyone else in the world, bad thoughts were not foreign to me, but this was different. This thought was so strong that it caused panic to rush through my whole being like stampeding cattle! My entire body began to tremble as my heart pounded out of my chest and my pulse raced uncontrollably. All my strength drained from my limbs, and I struggled to get out of the tub. I fell back into the water, shouting desperately for Kathy to help me. Eight months pregnant, she strained to help me out of the bathtub and onto the couch. Then she ran into the kitchen to call our family doctor. He relayed a few questions to me through Kathy and concluded that I was having a panic attack, not a heart attack. Little did I know that this was the beginning of a three-and-a-half-year journey through hell.
Touring Hell and Calling for Heaven
The panic attacks continued, turning into endless, tormenting nightmares. Horrible images filled my mind as I imagined terrible things happening to me or envisioned myself doing dreadful acts. Although I knew in my heart that these images and thoughts were illusions, they still felt so real. I often wondered if I was losing my mind.
Finally, Kathy and I decided to quit our jobs and move up into the mountains to find a slower pace of life. We relocated to Lewiston, California, a town of about 900 people way up in the Trinity Alps. As time passed, the fear intensified, affecting every aspect of our lives.
Spiritual Attacks and a Prison Break
Two more years passed with no relief. Then, just when I thought it could not get any worse, I began to experience demonic visitations. Demons would literally come into our room at night and torment me. Lights went on and off, and pictures spontaneously fell off the wall. The phone rang every few minutes with people saying crazy things on the other end of the line. I am aware that many people do not believe in spirits, demons and angels, so this paragraph may be a little hard to swallow. But if you are reading this article and have had or are having these experiences, I hope you believe in them now.
By the third year of this terrible storm, Kathy had given birth to our second beautiful daughter, Shannon, but my life was becoming unbearable. Then, early one cold winter morning, something startling happened. I got up about 3:00 a.m., turned the stereo on low and lay down next to the speaker so I would not wake my family. We did not get very good radio reception in the mountains, but I thought I would try to find a late-night talk show to help get my mind off my condition. Finally, I tuned in to a preacher. The static was so bad that I could only make out about every third or fourth word of his message. Yet in the midst of the noise, I heard him say something that would forever change my life. He quoted Paul’s exhortation to Timothy: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7, NKJV). Then he went on to explain, “Fear is a spirit! Some of you are thinking you are going insane, but you are just listening to the spirit of insanity. Not all your thoughts are your own. Evil spirits talk to you by giving you their thoughts.”
I was stunned. I had been taught that Christians could be mentally ill but could not be demonized. What I did not realize until that night was that I had been educated right out of my solution.
I turned off the radio and asked Jesus what I should do. Immediately I heard a voice inside my spirit say, “You have been listening to the spirit of insanity and the spirit of fear. Tell them to leave you right now!” Lying on my back on the living room floor, I said in a quiet but confident voice, “You, spirit of fear, and you, spirit of insanity, get off me right now in Jesus’ name!”
I could not see anything, but suddenly, I felt something get up off my body. It physically felt like a lead blanket, the kind dentists use during X-rays, and it was being lifted off me. My shaking completely stopped, peace filled my soul, and my mind was clear again. Joy overwhelmed my heart, and I laughed out loud for the first time in more than three years. A miracle had happened in my life, and I was eager to tell Kathy and the world about it.
Learning to Stay Free
I knew I had experienced something incredible that night, yet I did not fully understand that I had received a real deliverance. What I experienced that night was not some kind of spiritual hype or psychosomatic occurrence. I was set free! I enjoyed complete freedom for more than a week. After three years of hell, it was amazing to be filled with peace. My joy returned, my appetite came back and all my physical symptoms disappeared. The demonic visitations left, and for the first time in years, I slept through the night.
But soon I encountered the harsh reality that getting free and staying free were two very different things. One dark, cold night, I was driving home from work in my jeep, winding through the forest on a narrow, unlit road that followed a wide creek. I was so excited about my newfound freedom that I shouted out loud; “I’m going to tell everyone about this—I’m going to help thousands of people get free!”
Just then, a voice in my mind shouted back, “If you tell anyone about this, I will kill you!”
Suddenly, all my symptoms returned. I had such a bad panic attack that I could not even drive. I pulled over into the ditch alongside the road. My heart was racing, and I was hyperventilating.
Then a quiet, yet powerful voice asked me a question: “Does the devil hate you?”
I knew instinctively it was the Holy Spirit speaking to me. “Yes!” I responded in my mind.
“Then why didn’t he kill you when you got saved?” the voice pressed.
“I don’t know,” I replied, still trying to gain my composure.
“Because he can’t! He has no power over you unless you give it to him,” the voice insisted.
Peace began to seep back into my soul, and the anxiety slowly lifted over the next few minutes.
I began to shout again, “I’m free! I’m free!”
That scene repeated itself many times over the next several years as I learned little by little how to stay free and keep my peace.
Who’s the Enemy?
It’s so important that we understand we are not warring against our old man, but against principalities. The war is finally won when you recognize that these thoughts are not your own and you resist them. Ephesians 6:10-13 says:
Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
When we understand that our old man is dead, we don’t try to fight with him anymore.
Because these thoughts are manifestations of evil spirits and not just bad ideas, when you decide to resist them, it becomes a struggle—an intense battle for land in the spirit realm. Most people retreat or digress to try and find peace or solace instead of press in and defeat the enemy.
Spiritual Conflict
Spiritual conflicts most often occur when we advance into new territory that is inhabited by evil spirits. Much like Joshua’s promised land experience or Nehemiah’s rebuilding of the walls, the enemy defends his territory when we are pushing forward into the new land. Most Christians are completely unaware that these are real spirit wars, so they retreat at the first sign of conflict, failing to recognize the true source of the battle. It is important to understand that evil spirits attack by giving you compelling thoughts. In other words, they make you feel like you want to do them, even though they are the opposite of your history and nature. Then those same spirits accuse you for having these thoughts and feelings. If you believe these accusations, you lose confidence in yourself and God’s ability to keep you. This starts a spiral down into depression, anxiety and self-hatred.
Practical Warfare
A few things that are important to remember in these times are that these evil spirits have no power over you (even though it feels as though they do). Rather, you have power over them. Second, these battles come in waves, and they will not last forever. Remember: if it’s not good, it’s not the end. And finally, you probably did nothing wrong to cause this battle. As a matter of fact, you are most likely experiencing this battle because you are doing something right. Here are a few more things to hold onto while you walk through the valley:
Don’t be afraid, but instead remember the Lord. “After I looked around, I stood up and said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the people, ‘Stop being terrified because of them! Remember instead that the Lord is great and awesome. So fight for each other—and for your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses'” (Neh. 4:14).
Remember the testimonies in your life. They are weapons of warfare. Fill yourself with faith by holding onto testimonies from other people’s lives too. Revelation 19:10c says, “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” This means if God’s done it before, He can and will do it again.
Remember the work you are doing is noble. Nehemiah 6:3 says, “So I sent messengers to them, saying, ‘I am doing a great work, so I am not able to come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and come down to you?'”
Remember who you are! The enemy will try and convince you that you are defeated, but the truth is that you are a victor! He’ll try and convince you that you’re the worst person in the world, but the truth is that you’re the apple of God’s eye, destined to change the world. Speak the truth about who you are over yourself with every assault that comes your way.
Trust Jesus to keep you. Jude 24 says, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with rejoicing.”
Release the peace within you through singing and proclaiming Jesus. Remember the freedom within you will become the freedom around you. Acts 16:25-26 says, “At midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s shackles were loosened.”
No matter what, nothing can separate you from God’s love—not even the valley! “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities nor powers, neither things present nor things to come,neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38-39).
Remember that God never leaves you, and He’s walking through the valley with you: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4).
Keep Walking Today
This too shall pass. Even though we may feel crazy in the valley, we have been given a sound mind. Here again, we have to remind ourselves that how we feel isn’t always how we are. I want to encourage you with this verse: 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV) says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Hold onto this as you walk through the valley, and remember the goal is to keep walking. Don’t set up camp, and don’t give up.
I am praying today that you would have peace in this season, that God would protect you at night and that His voice would be the loudest one over you. I pray that irrational thoughts would be dissolved in Jesus’ name and that Holy Spirit would make clear the illusion and lie of the enemy. I pray that angels would surround you, and that the right people would come around you in this season.
If you’re struggling in the valley, I encourage you to listen to a message I recently preached at Bethel by clicking here. You can watch it free with your Bethel TV account. I have so much compassion for everyone who may be working through this, and I have so much hope that you can and will be free.
What are some things you do to make it through the valley? Let me know in the comments!
Kris Vallottonis the senior associate leader of Bethel Church in Redding, California and cofounder of Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM). Kris travels internationally, training and equipping people to successfully fulfill their divine purpose. He’s a best-selling author, having written more than a dozen books and training manuals to help prepare believers for life in the kingdom. He has a diverse background in business, counseling, consulting, pastoring and teaching, which gives him unique leadership insights and perspectives. Kris has a passion to use his experience and his prophetic gift to assist world leaders in achieving their goals and accomplishing their mission.
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(Photo: Reuters/John Gress)A parishioner cries as he signs a song of worship in the 7,000-seat Willow Creek Community church during a Sunday service in South Barrington, Illinois, November 20, 2005.
Bill Hybels, the founder and Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church, announced the names of two leaders who will take on new roles to replace the role of senior pastor as he transitions out of the church leadership next year.
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(Photo: Willow Creek Association)Bill Hybels speaks during the Willow Creek Association’s 2013 Global Leadership Summit.
Heather Larson, currently executive pastor, will step into the role of Lead Pastor over all Willow Creek locations, and Pastor Steve Carter, currently teaching pastor, will become Lead Teaching Pastor.
Senior Pastor Hybels, who founded the church in 1975, will continue coaching and developing the two until he steps down from his role as senior pastor in October 2018, when Willow Creek celebrates its 43rd anniversary. He will then assume the title Founding Pastor.
“We’re welcoming two tested, respected leaders who embrace our values to assume roles that fit their unique gifts and talents,” Hybels said. “The staff and congregation have been enthusiastic about their leadership, and I have every confidence that this new model — with these specific people at the helm — will help Willow continue to thrive as we move forward.”
Larson joined Willow’s staff about 20 years ago, and has taken on various leadership roles, mostly in the church’s compassion efforts, locally and internationally. Five years ago, Hybels asked her to step into the executive pastor role.
“Heather has flourished in every leadership role I’ve given her,” Hybels said. “Her impeccable character and significant leadership abilities make her one of the best church leaders I’ve ever known. In this new role as Lead Pastor over all Willow Creek locations, I have no doubt she will continue to lead our church into a fantastic future, following where God wants us to go.”
Carter joined Willow’s teaching team five years ago, after a 15-year mentoring relationship with Hybels. He has earlier worked with Rock Harbor Fullerton in California and two churches in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“The greatest attributes Steve brings to this new role at Willow are his pure, genuine teaching gift and his deep love for people,” Hybels said. “He’s one of the most gifted communicators I’ve ever worked with, and he gets our church’s values.”
Hybels said he plans to “invest myself more fully into training and coaching church leaders around the world” through a Willow Creek Association, an international Christian ministry. He also wants to take The Global Leadership Summit, a movement of 400,000 leaders in 130 countries, to “some of the most under-resourced, oppressed countries in the world, where pastors and leaders are hungry to be developed.”
Hybels launched The Global Leadership Summit in 1995.
“My wife, Lynne, and I plan to remain part of the Willow Creek congregation,” he said. “I plan to use my gifts to serve the God I love, just as I’ve challenged each person in our church to use their gifts. I look forward to spending even more time with Lynne, our kids, and our grandkids — and I see a few sailing adventures on the horizon as well. It’s my deepest desire to live every day of my one and only life for the glory of God.”
Archbishop John visited five secondary schools where he met with religion, ethics and philosophy students, gave speeches, and participated in Q&A sessions.
He told Premier: “The young people were really unafraid to ask very serious and difficult questions, to ask who they are, where they come from, what about creation, what about science what about evolution.
He added: “It gives you a tremendous opportunity to talk about Jesus. One young person asked me what is it that attracted you to Jesus, so really it gives you a chance to talk about the Gospel. “
Archbishop John also spoke about healing at All Saints Church, Hunmanby and met with members of the fishing community.
It was part of three days of activities available in the area geared at inviting people to learn more about Jesus. It included a trip to Scarborough Fair at the Flower of May Holiday Park.
Rt Revd Alison White, Bishop of Hull along with members of the Parish offered to pray for shoppers and passers-by.
Rev Nigel Chapman of Filey said, “As Christians, prayer forms an important part of our life. Many people wander into church, Christians and non-Christians alike, asking us to pray for them. So we are simply going out onto the streets, offering to pray for people and in some small way show that we care”.
Listen to Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu speaking with Premier’s Tola Mbakwe here:
Fast Facts: Gateway Church of Marysville began in 1954 as First Baptist Church of Marysville, and in the spring of 2015 the name was changed to Gateway Church of Marysville. Pastor Dallas Berry and Gateway Church have a passion to see all people come to faith in Christ by conversion and to become Christlike in conviction, character, conduct, commitment, and conversation.
The church is working toward the launch of the Gateway Initiative which includes Gateway House, a shelter for battered woman in domestic violence situations; Gateway DayCare; Gateway Latchkey; and Gateway Pre-school. Currently, MOPS (Mothers of pre-schoolers) has been a big outreach for the church. The program is in its second year with MOPS and is reaching more than 20 unchurched moms and families. Please pray that the moms at Gateway will be effective at reaching the moms who come to MOPS with the gospel. Also, please pray for their annual Harvest of Praise Sunday coming up on November 5th featuring pianist Jim Hendricks from Chicago.
Finally, Gateway Church has been through some tough times over the past couple of years. Please pray as they now move in the direction the Holy Spirit is leading them so that they will be effective in evangelizing the Blue Water Area through missional discipleship.
“Pray for . . .” is the Sunday blog series at ThomRainer.com. We encourage you to pray for these churches noted every Sunday. Please feel free to comment that you are praying as well.
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