“Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:36-37)

“Altar calls are unbiblical.”

Every time I make that statement, whether in a sermon or a seminar, there are raised eyebrows and glaring gazes that shoot nonverbal missiles right back at me.

One of the passages that supports this contentious statement is the one quoted above from Acts 2. It is in the context of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.

Peter has just finished preaching a pointed sermon proving that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah. Before he can call for a response to this message though, the people pipe up: “What shall we do?”

Luke, the writer of the book of Acts, makes it very clear that it was not Peter’s sermon that convinced them to ask that question. It was because they were “cut to the heart.” The Greek word so translated literally means “to prick or to pierce thoroughly.”

Peter’s words, though direct, were not by themselves able to produce such a result. It was the double-edged surgical scalpel of the Word and Spirit that caused the listeners to respond the way they did.

Dear DWOD friend, as you advance toward your destiny, you need to be acutely aware of the distinction between convincing and conviction.

Convincing is something you and I do by logical progression and skillful persuasion. It is more of a sales job than anything else.

Conviction, on the other hand, is what the Holy Spirit does. It is His specialty. As Jesus taught the disciples, it is part of His job description. “And when He comes, He will convict the world of its sin…” (John 16:8).

Clearly the first application of this distinction is to the enterprise of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with others—whether it is done from the platform of a pulpit or other public forum where you are addressing a group—or in a one-on-one setting over a cup of coffee in your dining room.

I must admit that it is possible for you to convince someone with your superior persuasive skills to give their life to Christ. However, if it is not undergirded by the conviction of the Holy Spirit, chances are very good that this conversion experience will not produce lasting results.

Your job is to simply share from your heart with conviction. But it is not your responsibility to bring about conviction in their hearts. Leave it to Holy Spirit.

Another area where you will be called upon to do something similar is when you face conflict. Of course, you would want to meet face-to-face with the person who disagrees with you. Whether the other party is a member of your family, a colleague, a client, a business partner—if you approach the meeting with the aim of getting a conviction, you may not be successful.

What if, you were to simply state your case, as Peter did that day, and leave the rest to your Paraclete, as Jesus called the Holy Spirit? It is interesting that this Greek word is actually a legal term, describing someone who comes alongside you to support, counsel and help you. Let your advocate do what He does best.

And they too will ask, as did those who were cut to the heart on the Day of Pentecost: “What must we do?”

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

Over the past 32 years of full-time ministry, there have been many occasions when I’ve had to answer questions that begin with: “WHY?”

Sometimes it was easy to see a direct cause and effect, as in someone who smoked all their life being diagnosed with lung cancer.

But when I was asked to explain why the man who had never smoked a cigarette in his life was dying of lung cancer or why the drunk driver walked away from the accident with nary a scratch while the sober one lost her life, it was not that easy. It was downright difficult.

To be perfectly honest, in times such as these I had to admit that I could not really answer that question with any sense of certainty. The last thing a pastor does at a time when someone needs pastoral care is to talk theology or worse get into a debate on theodicy (why God permits evil things to happen to good people).

Sometimes the best answer I could offer was: “God only knows!” Then I would pray to that God who only knows why to give the one who asked the question His strength, peace, grace, clarity or whatever else they needed at that moment. For “your Father knows what you need before you ask” (Matthew 6:8).

However, with the benefit of hindsight, I have also discovered that when a follower of Jesus goes through such difficult situations, there is at least one sure answer to the “Why” question. It may not be readily apparent when someone is walking through the valley, but it becomes plain as you hit higher ground.

Let me illustrate with a man named Rex who I got to know outside church circles. His daughter, who had been barely married for a year, died very unexpectedly when she suffered an epileptic seizure while taking a bath. Needless to say it rocked his life. But, by the grace of God, he and his family came through the tragedy with their faith intact.

Because Rex was a leader in his business organization, he had the opportunity to share his testimony of God’s faithfulness, peace and comfort to thousands of people over the years that followed. Holy Spirit used his testimony to bring healing to many.

A few years later, the son of another leader in the same organization died in his sleep of an apparent heart attack. It was totally unexpected as this young man was a specimen of physical fitness. When Rex heard the news, he hopped on a plane and flew from one end of the country to the other so he could be with his friend Ron and his family.

Now you can see what the apostle Peter is talking about in the verse quoted above. As Rex experienced the comfort of his heavenly Father following the death of his daughter, now he could comfort Ron with the comfort he himself had received.

Dear DWOD friend, this is the unknown reason you should know when you are going through a difficult time or facing a test of your faith. God can use your experience to bring comfort, strength, counsel, companionship, etc. to another person who may be travelling down the same or similar road.

It may not always be easy to remember this when you’re wrapped up in your own pain, as some of you may be right now. But I pray that Holy Spirit will bring this to your remembrance.

For the day will indeed come when the Lord will use you in a way that you could have never imagined. And the person at the receiving end of your ministry will be so thankful—to you and “to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort.”

“I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” (Deuteronomy 5:9)

Passages such as Exodus 20:5, 34:7, Numbers 14:18 and Deuteronomy 5:9 make it very clear that the impact of sins extends beyond those who commit them.

Those of you who have offered yourself for any kind of inner healing ministry will be familiar with the term “sins of the fathers” or “generational curses.” Since no one can be totally aware of every sinful tendency that was passed down the generational lines to us, we simply break them off so they cannot continue to affect us adversely.

The flip side of generational curses is blessings that were handed down to us from generations that have gone before us. In passages such as Deuteronomy 5:10 and Exodus 20:6, we are told that our God is one who is equally known for “showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.”

On this Father’s Day, as I was exploring the influence of godly fathers upon their families (e.g. Psalms 127 & 128), I came across a study that followed the generational lines of two prominent families from the 18^th century. The goal was to see how curses and blessings manifested themselves in the lives of their descendants.

One family descended from Max Jukes, a well-known atheist, who did not follow the Lord. Neither did his wife. Among the over 1,200 descendants studied, 310 were professional vagrants; 440 were physically wrecked by lives of debauchery and uncleanness; 130 went to the penitentiary for an average of 13 years each (7 were murderers); 100 were alcoholics; 60 were habitual thieves; 190 were prostitutes. Of the 20 who learned a trade, 10 learned it in a state prison. Collectively, they cost the state of New York over a million dollars.

The second family studied was that of Jonathan Edwards, the New England preacher, and his godly wife, Sarah. Among their descendants, 300 became pastors, missionaries, and theological professors; over 100 became college professors; over 100 became lawyers, including 30 judges; over 60 became physicians; over 60 authored good books; 14 became presidents of universities; 3 became United States congressmen; and one, (although he was a black sheep spiritually), became the Vice President of the United States (Aaron Burr, Jr., Edwards’ grandson).

Wow! What a striking contrast!!

Dear DWOD friend, the consequences of your decisions today not only impact your destiny in your lifetime. They follow down the generational lines and impact the destinies of your descendants as well—for better or for worse. You can be responsible for handing them blessings or curses. Now, that’s a heavy, isn’t it? But it is the God’s honest truth.

What a privilege it would be to be known as one who passed only blessings down the generational lines as Jonathan and Sarah Edwards were! It is my prayer that this is what will be said of you and me many years from now.

Do I hear a loud AMEN?

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (I Timothy 2:1-2)

We who live in the province of Ontario in the country of Canada were surprised by the results of the election that was held today. The ruling party, which had been plagued by scandals, was elected to power with a stunning majority. None of the opinion polls had predicted this overwhelming victory.

Many Christians, including me, have grave concerns about some of the policies of this government. I am personally aware of a Christian school being told that essentially they had to teach sex education classes which were in total opposition to their understanding of marriage as a covenant between a man and a woman only…or they would be shut down.

Chances are very good that with the solid majority that they have been given by the people of Ontario, they will have no trouble pushing through their legislative agenda, at least some of which will not sit well with theologically conservative evangelicals like me who are practising charismatics to boot!

What must be our primary response when this government enacts laws that violate our Christian conscience?

Judging by the apostle Paul’s advice to his young protégé Timothy, there is only one action that we can control. Prayer! We intercede for “kings and all those in authority.” That’s it. Period.

Badmouthing the government. Criticizing the Premier. Focusing on her sexual orientation. None of these is as an option that will bring about the positive change that prayer will!

On the contrary, it will give rise to anger and judgment which will only trigger the law of sowing and reaping. We ourselves will end up being the targets of anger and the recipients of judgment.

It reminded me of a time when I was under attack by a segment of the church I was pastoring at the time. Whenever I focused on the hurt they were inflicting upon me, I was the one who was getting angry, resentful and bitter. It was beginning to creep into my sermons. Not good at all.

Around that time, I was at a Conference where R.T. Kendall was teaching on the power of forgiveness. One thing he stressed was that we have not totally forgiven until we have asked God to bless those who stress us. After all, isn’t this is what Jesus told us to do in Luke 6:27-28? “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

I could not control what others were saying about me. I could not change their minds about me or the offense they took at what I had said or done. None of these were under my control.

All I could do was to focus on the only thing I could do that would honour Jesus. Not only did I forgive them, but I went on to ask God to bless them and indeed declared blessing over their families, jobs, businesses and relationships.

I would like to say that they all changed their minds and we all lived happily ever after. Not! But I had the satisfaction of knowing that I did what I could control and left the rest to God. Let’s just say that He took care of me just fine!

Dear DWOD friend, on the road to your destiny you too will face times such as these when your hands are tied. You cannot take matters into your own hands and change things around. You too would be wise to follow Scriptural directives such as the ones in this post.

We would love to hear from you about similar situations that you have faced and Scriptures that guided you during those times. Please share them with the rest of your DWOD family, will you? Thanks in advance.

“The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.”

“One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!” (John 9:11, 25)

Every Sunday evening at Morgan’s Point United Church we have been offering what we call a Good News Gathering. The format is very simple. We begin with a time of refreshments at 6 p.m. At 6:30 we have a time of praise and worship. Then we go around the room and ask anyone who has a praise report to share it. Following this time of sharing, one of our members shares their personal testimony. Then we break up into small groups and pray for one another.

The primary purpose of this gathering is to share with those who have not yet made a commitment to follow Jesus fully how their lives can be changed when they choose Him to be their Lord and their Saviour. “If He can do it for me, He can do it for you as well!”

As an added bonus, it also provides an opportunity for those who are further along in their faith walk with Jesus to make connections with those who are just on their way (or about to get going) and disciple them.

When I tell friends outside our congregation about the Good News Gatherings, the first question they ask is: “How do you find so many people who are willing to share their testimony in a relatively small community such as yours?”

My answer is very simple: We teach them to keep it simple. This way it does not seem foreboding in any way to those who are not used to sharing their testimony to put it all together.

As a matter of fact, the verses quoted at the top of this post provide the framework for an effective testimony. You know the story of the man who was born blind receiving his sight. This causes quite a stir among the religious leaders. They question him repeatedly to discover how exactly this amazing change had come about.

The blind man’s response is very simple. There are three distinct parts in his response that constitute the essential elements of a testimony.

“I was blind.”

“Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed…”

“Now I see.”

We have made it easy to remember by teaching everyone who shares their testimony to use the following format:

B.J—What life was like Before Jesus.

E.J—How you Encountered Jesus.

A.J—How life has changed After Jesus became your Lord and Saviour.

Pretty simple, isn’t it? But don’t let the simplicity fool you. It is simply powerful when you put all three elements together.

Last Sunday, one of our DWOD subscribers, Lori Fournier shared her testimony using this format. Just so you know, when I first asked Lori to do this a couple of months back, she was very reluctant to comply with my request. She was not sure that her testimony would have much of an impact on anyone else. She was not ready. So I just left her alone.

On Sunday afternoon, Sulojana asked Lori to consider doing it that very same evening. She had a sense that the timing was the Lord’s. Thankfully, Lori, who hears well from the Lord herself, agreed.

We had four first-timers at the GNG that evening. Two of them were powerfully touched by Lori’s testimony. Great freedom came to them during prayer ministry.

Dear DWOD friend, do you have your testimony ready to be shared with others at short notice? You may wish to prepare it using the B.J., E.J. & A.J. template. You never know when a door will open up for you to share it with someone who needs to hear it at that particular moment.

Jesus wants your testimony to be shared. The world needs your testimony to be heard. You got it?