From the desk of Steve Shultz:
James Goll says below, "True compassion is always PERSONAL." That statement alone says a whole lot and makes this entire insightful article worth reading.
There is an old saying: "It's not personal, it's just BUSINESS!" Phooey! True compassion on the other hand is ALWAYS PERSONAL. Read on.
Here are some great resources by James and Michal Ann Goll and other heroes of the faith!
Blessings,
Steve Shultz
James Goll:
"Champions of Faith, Hope and Love"
"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is (springs) from God; and he who loves (his fellowmen) is begotten (born) of God and is coming (progressively) to know and understand God (to perceive and recognize and get a better and clearer knowledge of Him)." 1 John 4:7
The Holy Spirit is looking for champions in our day. Like our friend, Randy Clark, we believe that God can use "little ole me"! That is why Michal Ann and I have hosted the Women on the Frontlines Conferences every year and have written about some of these valiant heroes in the Women on the Frontlines book series.
There are champions - both great and small - who have made it into "God's Hall of Heroes." Some of these good people we may never meet nor know until we see them in Heaven, but others, such as Rolland and Heidi Baker of Iris Ministries, are modern-day trailblazers and pacesetters from whom each of us can learn a great deal.
All too often we focus on the gigantic exploits that are done by great people of faith, but we must never forget that little acts of love and kindness often precede public displays of power. Each of us must go through a hidden preparation period in which we learn how to walk in compassion and, as in any process, we have to take "baby steps" at first. It is the path of hiddenness that prepares you to be presented before man.
Michal Ann and I have had the pleasure of knowing Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda for more than 30 years. As many already know, it was the healing prayers of Mahesh Chavda which paved the way for the Lord to bless us with our four beautiful children. I have often said, "Mahesh is not a show horse; he is a workhorse!"
In the earlier days of my ministry I had the privilege of doing some behind-the-scenes work for Mahesh's meetings as he traveled around this nation and internationally. I remember getting drinks for him, serving as a "catcher," fetching his tennis shoes so his tired feet could be more comfortable after praying with people until 2:00 AM, and enjoying the fun of non-religious fellowship with him.
What always impressed me the most, as I observed and learned from Mahesh, was how he always took time for each individual. He never seemed to be in a rush; he ministered to each person as though every single individual was the most important person in the meetings. I learned from my dear friend, Mahesh Chavda, that Only Love Can Make a Miracle!
A Revival of Kindness
The world needs a revival of kindness today. Imagine what would happen if God's people began to use their innate creativity to develop ways to show kindness to others. Simple acts of kindness, stemming from the love of God, would effect major changes in people's lives and the ways people respond to one another.
Here are some random acts of kindness that you might want to consider as you go about your daily routine.
• Give an unusually good tip to a server in a restaurant.
• While in the drive-through line of a fast-food restaurant, pay for the meals that were ordered by the people behind you.
• Give someone a word of encouragement to a person in need.
• Take time to be a good listener to someone who needs to share his or her circumstances with you.
• Surrender your place in line to someone who seems to be in a hurry, whether in a supermarket, a barbershop, a bank, or elsewhere.
• Ask others if you could pray for them.
• Help an elderly or handicapped person to cross a street.
• Help someone lift a heavy item.
• Leave an anonymous gift on someone's doorstep.
• Take bags of groceries to a poor family and leave a note that says, "From the Man Upstairs who sees and cares."
• Send cards of encouragement and comfort to the lonely.
• Distribute Bibles and Christian books to people you encounter in your day-to-day activities.
• Volunteer to help in hospitals, schools, libraries, nursing homes, and other facilities.
• Tell people about a good, good God that loves them with an everlasting love!
All of these "random acts" of kindness are seeds of compassion that will truly make a difference in the lives of others. Take a moment now and see if you can come up with other ways to express God's love in personal, practical, and tangible ways. Find something you can do to bless another.
True Compassion Is Always Personal
True compassion is always personal. In Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary we learn that compassion is "a sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it." It is more than just a feeling; it is also an action. Compassion gives you an insight into another's need and it enables you to understand their hurts, pain, needs, and heartache.
Then, as you pray about what compassion has revealed to you, you ask God for wisdom to show you how to help the other person (see James 1:5-8). God will reveal to you what needs to be done to help alleviate the other's situation.
Paul tells us, "Clothe yourselves therefore, as God's own chosen ones (His own picked representatives), (who are) purified and holy and well-beloved (by God Himself, by putting on behavior marked by) tenderhearted pity and mercy, kind feeling, a lowly opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, (and) patience (which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper)" (Colossians 3:12).
Here we see the qualities of compassion in a Believer's life, which he or she must put on and be clothed with every day: purity, holiness, tender-hearted pity, mercy, kind feelings, humility, gentleness, patience, endurance, and good temper. These come from deep within you, where the Holy Spirit resides; they are the fruit of the Spirit in your life.
Could it be that the farther we go on our journey with God, the more He wants us to be like Him? Do you want to be like Him? Do you want to follow in the footsteps of the Lord? Do you want His image to be formed in you?
If your answer to these questions is yes, then you must let the necessary ingredient of compassion fill your heart and motivate you to get on the frontlines of service for your Lord. Your High Priest who is touched with the feelings of your weaknesses will touch you and touch others through you. All you have to do is to be willing to let Him use you for such humble and yet noble purposes.
The Coming Harvest
I love the story of the Prodigal Son, don't you? Let's take a look at the father in this parable: "So he (the Prodigal Son) got up and came to his (own) father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with pity and tenderness (for him); and he ran and embraced him and kissed him (fervently)" (Luke 15:20).
This is an interesting picture of a father's love for his son. The father made it easy for the son to return home. He ran to his son when he was still "a long way off," and opened his arms to hug and kiss him. This was a "divine eruption" of compassion.
The boy had come to his senses as he ate pig slop in the pig sty. He came to the realization that he needed his dad, so he decided to return home.
There are countless "prodigal sons" in our world today - the homeless, the sick, the disenfranchised, the depressed, the confused, the addicted, the wayward, the incarcerated, the abused, and the poor - and each one needs to know that the Father loves him or her.
We need to be motivated in such a way that we would actually see these "prodigals" and go running after them, as the father in this story did. There is a coming harvest - a harvest of prodigals, if you will - and we need to be ready for it. We need the prodigals and we need their sphere of influence.
Compassion always has to be personal. It needs to flow from your heart to the person in front of you.
We need a revelation of what compassion really is and what it entails, and I hope this communiqué will help to open the eyes of your understanding with regard to this extremely important and urgent matter. The God of all compassion and comfort wants us to become compassion in the same way that He is love. He lives within you, so let Him and His miracle-working love and compassion flow forth from you.
When we begin to be truly sensitive to the needs of others and begin to minister to their deepest needs, the ruins within the Body of Christ will be repaired, and God's people will be restored. To do this kind of ministry, however, you must literally lay down your life for others.
You must put your personal desires and conveniences aside, and you must dispense true justice, practice kindness and compassion, and provide the help that is needed (see Zechariah 7:9-10).
Do you want to make a difference in the world? Then be different from others by walking in compassion wherever you are. People will see the difference, and they will want to have what you have. Not only that, but they will receive what they need through your compassion.
Get ready, for the harvest is coming. Become a co-laborer with God and go out into the whitened fields armed with His compassion and love. Like Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda and Rolland and Heidi Baker, you too can be a champion of Faith, Hope and Love! Now is the time – it is the hour of triple new beginnings in the season of 8/8/08 and beyond.
New Champions of Faith. New Champions of Hope. New Champions of Love!
James W. Goll
Encounters Network
Email: info@encountersnetwork.com
August 21-23, 2008
Portals of Revelation
Grace Center
2420 Bethlehem Loop Rd, Franklin, TN 37069
Contact: 615-595-0653
September 28, 2008
Call2Worship
Location: TBA (Nashville, TN area)
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James W and Michal Ann Goll
After centuries of neglect, the Church is rediscovering the realm of dreams and visions as a legitimate avenue for receiving divine revelation. In Dream Language, James W. Goll provides an insightful and helpful handbook to this fascinating and little-known world. Based on extensive study and filled with personal insights from his years of walking in this realm, the author builds a solid framework for how Christians today can receive, understand, interpret and apply dream revelation from the Holy Spirit. This book also contains a section on interpreting basic symbols, so whether you are beginning to walk in this realm already or simply want to understand more about it, Dream Language is the perfect guide. In this book you will learn
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You May Also Call Us With Your Order- 8am to 4pm- Pacific Time, Monday-Friday
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 "Power of Influence"
by Che' Ahn
(Reverse the Decree of '73 Conference - held in January 05 with Lou Engle, Harry Jackson)
"What Goes Up Must Come Down"
by James W. Goll
(Sounds of Heaven Conference- held in March 2005 with Jim Goll, Harry Jackson, Wes Campbell, Ray Hughes)
 "Learning to Drink in the Desert"
by Heidi Baker
(Secret Place 3 Conference - held in January 05 with Graham Cooke)
"The Cross and the Crucified Life Will Be Popular Again" by Rick Joyner
(Reverse the Decree of '73 Conference
- held in January 05 with Lou Engle, Harry Jackson)
 "Being a Secret Weapon Against the Enemy"
by Harry Jackson Jr.
(Sounds of Heaven Conference- held in March 2005 with Jim Goll, Harry Jackson, Wes Campbell, Ray Hughes) .... (more)
You May Also Call Us With Your Order- 8am to 4pm- Pacific Time, Monday-Friday
1-866-354-5245 (USA) -OR- 1-541-926-3250
(Outside the USA) |
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