Be a Blessing!

You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.
               - 2 Corinthians 9:11

"God gives us more so we can give more.” That was the statement the businesswoman made as we had lunch together with friends. She and her family have been incredibly generous to our ministry for many years. She went on to share several stories of how God gave them supernatural discernment at crucial times in their business that allowed them to make a significantly larger profit than similar companies. She credited God for their success and believed that God gave them that success so they could give even more to His work. I do not recall ever hearing a businessperson share that perspective prior to my conversation with her. But since that conversation so many years ago, I've met many people like that lady. And they all agreed that if more business people took her approach, they would have more successful businesses.

But it is not just business people who need to rethink this issue. How do we, ordinary men and women trying to make a living, view our possessions? Do we see our possessions as a vehicle through which God can work? Or are possessions merely a means to make our own lives more comfortable?

In my experience, when Christians view their wealth as a means to bless others in the name of Christ, God gives them even more, which allows them to increase their giving in even greater ways. When Christians tend to focus on their own needs, they never quite have enough to accomplish all they want. But when they focus on giving to others, it frees up a spiritual pathway for God to use them to bless the work of God and those who work for God.

This is not only true for individuals, but it is also true for churches. When churches see their assets as tools to expand the Kingdom of God, the Lord gives them even more assets so they can increase their impact. When churches become tight-fisted, thinking only of how they can improve their facilities or enhance their internal programming, their financial situation often gets worse instead of better. 

God sees how we use our possessions, both as individuals, and as churches, and gives us resources to match that stewardship. Whether individually or corporately, God rarely gives us more if we have not displayed an attitude of generosity with what He has already given us. He has enriched us so that we can be generous. This is a key truth we must remember as we consider our personal budgets and our church budgets. What does YOUR budget say?

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves at the Executive Director of the Baptist Convention of New England. He has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

The Difference Between Pastors and Missionaries

Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Missions. Just the word alone put images in our minds. For many people it means that someone leaves their home in the United States and goes to live in a grass hut in a Third World undeveloped country and eats monkey brains for breakfast every day. For other people it means a person must learn a foreign language so they can communicate with some exotic people group. 

But when I think about the word “missions,” I think more about the focus of one’s ministry, not the location of that ministry. To me missions means that we are focused on reaching non-believers with the gospel of Jesus Christ regardless of where they live, what language they speak, or what they eat for breakfast. We need far more missionaries than we currently have if we are to impact both our local community and the farthest corners of the earth for Christ.

I think being a missionary is different than being a pastor. Pastors primarily serve believers in the local church by equipping them to do ministry effectively. It is important work. We need more healthy effective pastors doing the work that pastors are supposed to do. Good pastors strengthen their local church and then that church is able to send out missionaries. They might send them across the street, to the next town, the next state, or to other countries. 

Missionaries focus on reaching lost people for Christ. That does not mean they do not disciple people or strengthen churches, that is just not their focus. Pastors focus on discipling believers. That does not mean they do not engage in missions, of course they do, that is just not their focus. For example, while a pastor is thinking of how he will lead another small group Bible study, a missionary is thinking about how he will reach another community with the gospel. One is not better than the other, it is just different. And both are needed. 

Sometimes missionaries become pastors. And sometimes pastors become missionaries. But most often, they discover a calling from God and remain in that primary calling for most of their ministry. We need both pastors and missionaries working in partnership to fulfill the Great Commission. We need lay people to support their pastors and to support the missionary programs that their church has set up. Both are needed and both need prayers, volunteers and funding. They should not be in competition, but in partnership together so that they whole world might hear the glorious gospel of Christ.

Lord, raise up pastors and missionaries to help lead the church to be all that You want it to be. Amen.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves at the Executive Director of the Baptist Convention of New England. He has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Be Prepared for Ministry Opportunities

One of the saddest stories in the New Testament is found in Matthew 25:1-13. That story relates how ten virgins were waiting for the bridegroom to come so they could enjoy an amazing wedding feast. Five of those virgins had brought extra oil so that no matter when the bridegroom came, they would be ready to join in the festivities. The other five had not make preparations and instead were just hoping everything would work out in their favor. If you recall, the hour grew late, and when the bridegroom finally came, the five unprepared virgins had to run off to the store to buy more oil, while those who were prepared were able to enter into the party and join in the celebration. When the unprepared ladies finally returned, the door of opportunity was closed. They did not get to join in the festivities.

The reason I find this story sad is because all ten of the ladies knew the bridegroom was coming. They knew this was going to happen eventually, even though they did not know the exact moment. Clearly all ten had the ability and the resources to be prepared. All ten had lamps. All ten had some oil and the money to buy more. But only half of them actually took the time and energy to make adequate preparations so that no matter when the bridegroom came, they would be ready. The rest were unprepared, and once the opportunity passed, there was no way for the ones who were not prepared to get it back.

When I think of crisis type ministries like disaster relief or similar crisis type situations, this story comes to mind. It is not a question of IF a disaster or crisis will come, but WHEN. Sometimes disasters are spaced out over a long period of time. During those periods of calmness, it is easy to get complacent and relax in our preparations. But other times disasters come in groups, like the three hurricanes that recently hit the United States and its territory Puerto Rico, followed by the mass shooting in a mall and then a church. We know disasters are going to happen, even if we don’t know when. The only way to be adequately ready to respond is to already be prepared in advance. That is why training, in advance, is important. That is why having funding set aside and dedicated to crisis management is important. Otherwise the disaster comes and is gone before we have time to mobilize and finance the relief effort.

I am thankful that for people, and ministries like that have maintained a constant state of readiness. When the hurricanes hit, they were ready to go. When a mass shooting happened, they had trained trauma chaplains ready to respond. Regretfully, many Christians missed the chance to respond because they were not ready. But now is our chance to change that. The situations in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico are ongoing. So let’s get trained now so we can go. Another disaster or crisis will happen, and if we want to join in the relief efforts, we must be ready. Let’s be prepared so that we do not miss our opportunity to touch lives in the name of Christ when a disaster strikes.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Reaching New England For Christ

Her name was Miss Edna. She had lived her entire life in Texas. She had been a Baptist for more than 50 years. Though she had often done outreach projects for her church in Texas, she had never been on a mission trip outside her region. During the North American Mission Emphasis Week at her church, she heard about a group coming to Vermont on a mission trip and decided to join the team.

She spent the week cooking for the mission team and along the way she befriended a number of teens, mostly from troubled situations. Though she was not a preacher, Miss Edna's life shouted praise to her Lord and Savior. One night after dinner, she was sitting in a chair outside the church watching the teens play volleyball. She entered into a conversation with a particularly troubled young lady. By the time the conversation ended, that young lady knew she wanted the peace that Miss Edna had.

Though the young lady did not trust Christ that night, she did come to faith some months later and sent me a message on Facebook so that I would know it was Miss Edna who helped her begin her journey to the Lord. Though Miss Edna passed away some years ago, her spiritual legacy lives on.

Miss Edna was one of 1,500 volunteers who made up 70 volunteer mission teams that came to Vermont in the summer of 2009. They arrived in wave after wave of church buses and spread across Vermont like a flood of the Holy Spirit. Though only the Lord knows the full extent of what happened that summer, records show that at least 2000 people enrolled in one of our 40 multi-day summer outreach efforts. These multi-day outreaches included traditional Vacation Bible Schools as well as sports camps, day camps, and backyard Bible clubs. At least 59 decisions for Christ resulted from these ministries! Those volunteer teams also hosted dozens of one-day outreach events such as concerts and block parties. So many people came to these events that we could not even count them all. Many people prayed to receive Christ at these one-day events as well, though we were unable to get accurate counts due to the nature of the events. What a summer it was!

As we look forward to the summer of 2017, now is the time to be planning for your summer mission trip. Whether your church is inside New England or outside our region, you can browse through our list of New England mission projects. Like Miss Edna, you can invest a portion of your summer in sharing Christ with others in New England and create a lasting spiritual legacy.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has served in New England since 1993. He is a proud father and grandfather, a cancer survivor, a prolific author and determined to reach New England for Christ.

Do We Believe in Ministry More Than Video Games?

Matthew 6:33 - But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

 

My primary ministry is to coordinate the work of my denomination in the region where I live. In that role I get to spend time with many fine young couples who have a passion for changing their corner of the world. They are often serving in challenging settings, whether off the beaten path rural communities or inner city urban areas. Many of them are serving small churches with limited budgets. Many of them are starting new churches in places underserved by existing congregations. One of the things I help them do is connect with partners who will stand with them in prayer, giving and volunteering until their ministry is strong enough to stand on its own. Those partners come from other area churches as well as from churches outside our area. It is a lot of work to find partners willing to sacrifice their time, their treasure and their talents to help a church they are not even part of. But the Lord touches hearts and partners join the cause.

One week a pastor sent a Facebook message to me. He had been working the social media angle pretty hard trying to find partners. Though some people had responded, many had not. In a pointed moment of realization it occurred to him that many of the people he was contacting about partnering with him were ignoring his messages about partnering but sending him countless messages inviting him to play games on Facebook. He found it ironic that they would talk to him a lot about video games but not about sharing Jesus with others. His message pondered what it would be like if he could get people as excited about partnering with him in ministry as they were about playing games on Facebook. I wonder the same thing.

People who tell me they do not have time to volunteer seem to have the time to play on both softball and basketball leagues. People who tell me they do not have money to donate somehow have the money to drive the latest model car with all the upgrades. Pastors who tell me their church is too stretched to help plant another church find money for another round of renovations in a sanctuary that already looks pristine. Church youth groups and senior adult groups go amazing sight-seeing trips on fully equipped buses, but seem unable to take those same people on a mission trip. Once I got a letter from a mega-church asking me for money. They wanted to build a $120,000 playground for the children in their already well-funded private school. I sent them a letter back suggesting they tithe off their playground fund to a church plant in New England. I never got a response.

The point I am trying to make is that we have somehow gotten our priorities all messed up. Now Christians play games and have fun instead of being about the business of winning others to Jesus. I am not suggesting that we should never have fun or play games, but somewhere along the line we must stop playing games with our faith and start doing whatever it takes to win our nation to Jesus.

Lord, help us be serious about the business of sharing Christ with those around us. Amen.

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This devotional is from the book “Heavenly Mundane” by Dr. Terry W. Dorsett. Dr. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

The Life Changing Gospel

I was 11 the first time I truly understood the gospel. It filled me with hope for the future. It was a hope that lifted my eyes off of the momentary troubles in my life and changed my perspective. It changed my perspective about my family, my community and my church. For me, the gospel was truly good news.

The gospel began to bear fruit almost immediately in my life. By the time I was 14 I knew I wanted to be in ministry. I preached my first sermon in the 8^th grade and somehow covered the entire book of Revelation in less than 10 minutes. I look back on that first sermon with a humorous smile realizing that I’ve never understood that book as clearly as I thought I did that day! Those early days of my faith were a joyous time of learning, growing and discovering what the gospel could do in my life.

Do you remember the joy you felt when the truth of the gospel first came to you? Do you remember how it changed you? Do you remember the wonder and amazement you had when you learned something new in the Word or through prayer? Since you received the gospel, have you born fruit in keeping with the gospel that now dwells in you? Have we genuinely deepened in our faith or merely become pious?

Titus 3:3-4 reminds us that “we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared” he saved us. That salvation was life altering, not only for us, but for those around us who were also impacted by our understanding of the gospel. The gospel changes people and it is a change worth experiencing.

Yet billions of people around the world have yet to hear the truth of the gospel. Millions right here in America only know a cultural gospel that is really no gospel at all. Those of us who are born again Christians can be part of changing that reality. We can rise up as a people of God and put aside our racial differences, our political differences, our stylistic differences and share the gospel with those around us. We can pray, give and volunteer through our churches, through the organizations like the Baptist Convention of New England, Samaritan's Purse, the Salvation Army and the SBC International Mission Board. In doing so, we can help those who have yet to hear the gospel for the first time experience the same mercy and grace that we did when we first believed. Are we willing to do it?

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

 http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY

Paul's Detour - Acts 16:16-34

Acts 16:16-34 tells the story of Paul’s second missionary journey. Paul planned to revisit all the places he had previously started churches at. God sent him a supernatural vision that told him to go to Macedonia instead. Paul obeyed the vision, changed his plans, and ended up in Philippi, which was a key city in Macedonia. There he met a business woman named Lydia, who became a Christian because of Paul’s ministry. Paul stayed in Lydia’s home and shared Christ with anyone in town who would listen. A closer look at each verse reveals some powerful truths.

Verse 16 - Once, as we were on our way to prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit of prediction and made a large profit for her owners by fortune-telling.

Paul and Silas were on their way to pray when they encountered a demon possessed slave girl. This slave girl could tell the future through the demon that possessed her. The owners of this slave girl made a lot of money from her fortune telling. When people play with the occult, they open themselves up to demonic attack. Though the occult may at first seem to give a person special power, in reality it makes a person a slave to demonic power. Demons do not care about the people they possess. They only care about power and control.

Verse 17 - As she followed us she cried out, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”

This demon knew Paul was a man of God. It is fascinating that demons know the truth! Even though demons know the truth intellectually, they have refused to accept the impact of the truth. We must remember what the Apostle James said in James 2:19 - You believe that God is one; you do well. The demons also believe—and they shudder.

Verse 18 - And she did this for many days. But Paul was greatly aggravated, and turning to the spirit, said, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" And it came out right away.

The demon possessed slave girl followed Paul and his group around for days telling everyone who Paul was. The Bible says that Paul became aggravated about this and cast the demon out of the girl. The Greek word for “aggravated” is diaponetheis. The word can also mean “burdened.” Paul was not as much aggravated at the girl herself as he was burdened about her situation. She was after all demon possessed! When we minister to people whose lives are messed up by sin, we must be careful not to get aggravated at the person. Instead, we should be burdened for how the sins that bind them are slowly destroying their lives. We should be praying for God to deliver them from the chains that bind them. Paul decided to do something to help this young lady. Using the power of Christ, he commanded that the demon leave the girl. Notice he did not use his own power, but the power of Christ. The demon had to obey because Jesus Christ is on the throne and Satan is just a pretender. Satan only has power if we let him have it. Jesus’s power triumphed over Satan on the Cross! But we often let Satan convince us otherwise.

Verse 19 - When her owners saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities. 

The slave owners did not care if the girl was freed from the spiritual chains that bound her. All they cared about was money. When they realized they would not be able to exploit the girl any longer, they got very upset. What we get upset about reveals a lot!

Verses 20-21 - They said, "These men are seriously disturbing our city. They are Jews, and are promoting customs that are not legal for us as Romans to adopt or practice.”

The slave owners distorted the truth. They said Paul was disturbing the city when all he had done was help a desperate little girl. People should have been rejoicing at this good deed, instead they called good, evil, and attacked the good doers. Notice they used a racial slur, “They are Jews.” Racism has been used to justify many sins throughout the ages. Notice they appealed to their customs and their laws. Their customs and laws allowed little girls to be enslaved for the profit of others. Whenever our customs and laws create situations where one person can be wrongfully exploited by another, it is time to chance those customs and laws!

Verse 23 - After they had inflicted many blows on them, they threw them in jail, ordering the jailer to keep them securely guarded.

Paul and Silas were arrested, beaten up and thrown in jail. The jailer was specifically told to guard them “securely,” which meant to put them in the maximum security section of jail. The world’s reaction to the things of God sometime seems severe. But remember, Satan was fueling this response because he had lost a major battle in the spiritual war. Remember what Paul said in Ephesians 6:12 For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of darkness and the spiritual forces of evil.

Verse 25 - About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

Paul and Silas had been unjustly beaten by a mob and then chained to the floor in the maximum security section of the jail. Their response to their situation was praying and singing praise to God! How do we respond when we are treated unjustly?

Notice that the other prisoners were listening! Other people notice how Christians respond to unjust difficulties. We must resist the urge to be complainers and instead learn to use the power of prayer and praise in challenging situations.

Verse 26 - Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the jail were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's chains came loose.

Though we might be tempted to think that the earthquake was caused by the terrible singing of Paul and Silas, it was actually caused by the POWER of their prayers and praise! Never underestimate the power of prayer and praise! When God’s people start praying and praising, the foundations of Satan’s deepest cells are shaken. When God’s people start praying and praising, closed doors of every kind are opened! When God’s people start praying and praising, the chains of every sin that binds us come loose! We need to be praying and praising God more, especially when we are treated unjustly.

Verse 27 - When the jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison open, he drew his sword and was going to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped.

In those days, if a prisoner escaped, the jailer would be executed publicly. When the jailer saw the doors of the prison opened, he assumed all the prisoners had escaped and he decided to kill himself and get it over with. 

Verse 28 - But Paul called out in a loud voice, "Don't harm yourself, because all of us are here!”

Paul saw that the jailer was about to kill himself and called out to stop him. Paul had been beaten by a mob, arrested unjustly, chained to the floor of cold stone cell and yet he still cared about the jailer, whom most would have considered his enemy. How we treat our enemies says a lot about the kind of people we are.

Verse 30 - Then he escorted them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

Notice the change in the jailer’s behavior. He had chained them to the floor but now he was “escorting” them out of the jail. When God gets a hold of our lives, we often begin to change our behaviors without anyone having to tell us to do it. But an outward change of behavior is not enough.  We must not just have a temporary change of outward behavior. We must experience an inward change of spiritual condition. We must be born again. The jailer asked the most important question that anyone can ask, “What must I do to be saved?” We are all sinners and because of our sin we all deserve to spend eternity in hell apart from God, family, friends and all that we hold dear.

Many people ask why a loving God sends people to hell. The answer is that God does NOT send people to hell. People send themselves to hell as a result of their own wrong choices. No one forces us to sin; we do that quite well all on our own.

Verse 31 - So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

Paul answers the jailer’s question by telling him to believe on the Lord Jesus. If we want to be saved from a dark eternity separated from God and all that we hold dear, then we must believe in Jesus. Believing in Jesus means believing that Jesus is who He said He was and trusting Him to guide us in our lives. Notice that Paul calls Jesus, “LORD Jesus.” A “lord” is a ruler that tells others what to do. But Jesus is not a cruel ruler who tells others to sacrifice while He sits in a castle living well. Jesus is the kind of ruler that gave Himself for those who follow Him. Jesus is the kind of ruler we WANT to follow. Believing in Jesus is more than just an intellectual acceptance of the historical Jesus. Believing in Jesus is allowing Jesus to become the Lord, or ruler, of our lives. If we want to be saved from a dark eternity in hell, we must believe Jesus is who He said He was AND we must allow Jesus to become the ruler of our lives. If we have not yet been saved, we should consider turning from our sin and placing our faith in Christ. We might express that through a prayer something like this:

Dear Lord, I know I am a sinner and I deserve to be separated for all of eternity from You and from all that I hold dear. But right now I turn from my sin and place all of my hope in You. I want You to be the Lord of my life and help me know how to live. With Your help, I will do my best to follow You and serve You for the rest of my life. Thank you Lord, Amen.

Verse 33 - He took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds. Right away he and all his family were baptized.

As soon as the jailer made this personal commitment to Christ, his life was changed. The jailer took Paul and Silas home and washed their wounds. What kind of jailer does this for his prisoners? The jailer and his entire family were baptized as an outward of expression of their new faith. Baptism is IMPORTANT! Far too many people have treated baptism as if it was just a sweet ritual that we should go through to make our grandmother happy. Baptism is a public declaration of our inner faith and a shout of praise goes up from the angels of heaven every time a person is baptized in the name of Jesus. If we have not yet been baptized, it’s time.

Conclusion:

1. We are in a spiritual war against the forces of evil and should not be surprised when demonic forces oppose us and distort the truth.

2. There is power in prayer and praise that will overcome evil and give us strength to endure difficulties in life.

3. Outward behavioral change will only last if it comes from an inner spiritual transformation that begins with believing and following Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

4. Once we have had that inner transformation, we should be publicly baptized to proclaim that faith to the world.

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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He writes extensively and you can find all of his books at:

 http://www.amazon.com/Dr.-Terry-W.-Dorsett/e/B00405U4NY