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Ministry Encouragement Podcast – Episode #40 – Rev. Jim W. Hollis – 4-3-13
Sponsored by: Proactive Ministries (www.proactive-ministries.org) Offices: (770) 803-9988
Hello and greetings in Christ to all of you who share in The Ministry Encouragement Podcast. This is a spiritual milestone episode for me in a way because when you first start a Podcast you wonder if you will make it to the tenth episode. You have to “find your voice” and there’s a list of technical hurdles to get over. But here we are together – you as a faithful subscriber and listener – who is sharing in building a Christian community around this podcast. I want to say thank you from my heart and let you know that you are the reason I press on in this work. Your emails, voice-mails, phone calls and comments provide encouragement and motivation in our moving forward together.
Today, I will be discussing:
Overcoming Fear as Christ Followers
A primary Scripture which speaks to this is found in the Gospel of John, Chapter 20, verses 19-22. (John 20:19-22, RSV) This is the account of Easter evening after Christ had risen from the grave and had begun to make appearances to the women at the tomb and others. A number of the closest disciples had not yet seen the Risen, Living Christ and were gathered in an upper room, not out of celebration, but fear and terror.
We will be visiting this impressive gathering together to gain insight and discernment about what was going on with those who had spent the most time with Jesus while he was in his earthly ministry. Why were they here? What was the mood of gathering? Were they making plans or discussing going back to normal life since the one they had placed all their hope in was defeated?
In this story, Jesus does not leave them alone, abandoned – paralyzed in fear. He appears to this group and every life present is changed forever. We can glean insights from the story that relate directly to our lives today as Christ Followers. Far too often we can become overcome by fears, doubts and anxiety. How are we to handle such times and how can we prepare for them before they hit and wreck our potential in Christ?
There are some major truths which we see in this text:
- There is the horrible fear of those who are Religious Representatives and Leaders
- There is an entirely new level of fear once we become Disciples and hear God’s call on our lives
- There is a Power which is always greater than any fears, doubts and anxieties in life
- Finding that Power and infusing it into our daily walk is the KEY to overcoming “fear & doubt obstacles”
It’s my prayer that we will be ready for facing the fears that are certain to come in our lives through walking in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus breathed on these disciples and invited them to receive the Holy Spirit. That Divine Power transformed each of them into an incredible agent for sharing the love, mission and ministry of Christ. The ultimate purpose of the Holy Spirit is to be with us, in us and to guide us into a closer relationship with the Risen, Living Lord. The Holy Spirit’s mission is to point us to Jesus Christ.
Thank you so much for sharing in our Fortieth Episode today! Please continue to pray for these podcasts to be used by the Holy Spirit, through the sharing of them by Christ Followers, just like you and me to encourage hearts, relationships, lives and all kinds of people to know the unconditional love of Jesus Christ. Would you send the link to several friends, co-workers, and others in your life that you may encourage them? Email them the link: ministryencouragementpodcast.com
If you like our podcast, it would be a huge blessing for you to go to I-Tunes and give this podcast a positive review, and a rating. By taking a few minutes to do this, it will cause our Ministry Encouragement Podcast to climb in the listing of featured podcasts that come up as people across the world search I-Tunes. This can exponentially increase the number of persons who hear the good news shared in these episodes.
Also, I want to offer TWO FREE GIFTS to you and your Christian church or Group today:
1) IF you would like to discuss how your church, group or ministry can grow in reaching more persons through relational outreach, or if you would like to talk about how your ministry can move to the next level spiritually – I’m offering to visit with you and your fellow leaders for a free, up to 90 minute GoToMeeting call to discuss possibilities for your church, group or ministry.
2) If your Pastor and Leaders would like to explore new, creative and effective ministry strategies, one of us on our Staff at Proactive Ministries would be willing to provide your congregation with an Envisioning Experience at your location. We will need you to simply cover our travel expenses and lodging (if overnight). For more information, please email me: jim@ministryencouragementpodcast.com OR call, (770) 803-9988. This is a gift for your church from Proactive Ministries.
May God richly bless your life and use you as a wonderful witness to the unconditional love that is found in knowing Christ!
Jim
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