For His Glory - The 2018 Mission & Ministry Summit

For His Glory – The 2018 Mission & Ministry Summit

by Jeff Roth – Host/Moderator of the 2018 Mission & Ministry Summit

For His Glory - 2018 Mission & Ministry SummitThe theme for the Mission and Ministry Summit this year is For His Glory. It’s just three simple words, but living out those three words change everything. We hear the word glory used often when people use idioms like, “no guts, no glory” or they start to reminisce about the “glory days”. But what does “glory” really mean?

glory: praise, honor, recognition

In this life, we both give and receive glory. We give glory to others when they have done something extraordinary, selfless, or kind that moves us to respond. We praise them for what they have done. We honor them for their actions. We recognize that what they have done is worthy of a response. We also receive glory from others when we have done something that they deem praiseworthy.

It could be through a post on social media, a thank you note in the mail or a simple pat on the back. It’s their way of saying “Thanks”, “I’m proud of you”, or “You’re amazing!” If we aren’t careful we can spend our entire existence trying to receive glory from and give glory to other people. That existence is a sad existence. It is an existence that never satisfies our deepest longings and always leaves us wanting.

During our life, there is one whom we should give glory to and desire to receive glory from above all others. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you who that is, but just in case: it’s our Heavenly Father.

Our created purpose is to give glory to Him and seek the glory that comes from Him. I think we are most familiar with the Scriptures that remind us that we are to give glory to God. Verses like Matthew 5:16 (ESV) when Jesus says, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” This verse reminds us that our lives lived in obedience to Christ will give glory to our Heavenly Father.

Psalm 19:1 (ESV) also paints a picture of declaring the glory of God when it says, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” Have you ever stared into a sunset and thought you got a glimpse of the glory of God? Whether it’s a Southeast Missouri sunset or the stars on a clear spring night, when we look into the sky we are looking at the work of His hands. May it be so with our lives. When people see us living a life that is transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit they are looking at the handiwork of God and He receives glory from it.

What about receiving glory from God? Should we seek that? Is that even a thing? Well, according to Jesus in John 5:44, it is a thing and we should pursue it. Jesus said to the Jews, “How can you believe when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” These men fell into the glory trap. They were so focused on receiving glory from other people that they never sought to receive glory from God. They thirsted for the praise, recognition, and honor that came from other men.

That is a very relevant trap today as well. In our social media hyped culture it is so easy to be driven to receive likes, shares, and followers. We want the world to praise us for our good deeds. We want to be recognized for our offerings. We want to be honored for our service.

Those desires to receive glory, while natural, run contrary to what Jesus instructs us about giving, praying, and fasting in Matthew 6. Instead, Jesus tells us to do those things for the glory of God alone and when He sees what we have done in secret (for His glory) He will reward us.

If we let the opinions of mankind dictate our faith we are in trouble. Seeking glory from others people seriously hinders our ability to be faithful to Christ. We can get the glory from mankind, but that usually means we are choosing man’s glory over God’s. It’s not that it is a bad thing to receive glory from mankind, but it can never be our goal. God’s glory is always our goal and motivation. We must desire to be a people that are shaped by the presence of the Holy Spirit and God’s Word, not by the opinions of others.

For His Glory. It is my sincere hope that at Summit 2018 we can be reminded of these three simple words and that it would change everything about our movement.

  • That our churches would be driven to glorify God more than a church in every worship service, event, or outreach we do.
  • That our pastors would yearn more for the glory of God than the glory we can receive from men.
  • That the congregants that make up our churches would care more about what gives God the most glory than their long-held personal opinions.
  • That we would together, unified as the people of God, would make a decision to live for His glory alone.
  • That as we seek His glory above all else it is my prayer that God would, by His grace, use us to start revival and awakening in our communities.
Hope in the Darkness - A Story of Depression

Hope in the Darkness – A Story Over Depression

by Jeff Thomas

I have suffered from depression for years. It began when I was sexually abused by a school teacher when I was in my early teens. I have taken medication off and on for the last 20 years and have gone through a great deal of therapy with Christian counselors. I was excited to see the workshop entitled “10 Biblical Ways to Deal with Depression” by Brenda Poinsett at the Summit this past year. For years depression has been looked at with a stigma that causes most Christians suffering with it to remain silent and to hide it vigorously.

I attended the workshop expecting to be one of a few that did, but I was very surprised when the room began to fill up and ended up standing room only. Brenda and I visited before the session began and she actually asked if I would share a small part of my story about some of her talking points, which I was more than happy to do.

The content of her workshop was extremely helpful to me on a personal level and she is a wonderful and amazing person, but the one thing that stuck out to me was the attendance. Apparently the stigma is gone and people are willing to admit that they don’t have it all together. The fact that the room was filled to capacity encouraged me that perhaps people in general were finally ready to be open about their depression.

It was during this workshop that God placed it on my heart to come back to Arkansas and offer the same hope to the people in my community. “Hope in the Darkness” was born at the Summit. It was an idea to offer those suffering from depression the hope we all have in Jesus Christ to overcome any obstacle in our lives.

Hope in the Darkness, DepressionSo, for 4 months I met with a few family and friends, who have battled this enemy of the soul, to plan a one night event aimed at sharing the gospel of hope and victory. I also enlisted the help of a local licensed Christian counselor to co-host the event with me. Brenda was also a huge help. We emailed each other several times and she was more than happy to send me all the info I asked for. We advertised this free event with flyers, every door direct mailers and on Facebook.

Our goal for the event was two-fold. First we wanted to inform and educate people about depression. We explained the different types of depression, the symptoms of depression, the different types of treatment including medication, therapy and the biblical principles Brenda shared in her workshop. Second, we wanted to offer continuing help with either group sessions or one on one counseling. Our desire was to help the hurting find healing through the power of the Holy Spirit and to look at life with hope instead of despair.

So, on November 11, 2017 the team gathered to see what the attendance would be. We had about 20 pre-register for the event, but ended up with about 60 showing up. We had a panel that shared testimonies of their battle with depression and how these biblical principles helped them be victorious. I ended the night with a message of God’s love and desire to make us whole again. From this one event I now have about 15 individuals I’m seeing one on one to help in their battle with depression.

God began His plan at the Summit with a simple workshop held by a veteran of depression. Through that simple workshop He is now bringing healing to others hundreds of miles away and the work isn’t over yet. We are already planning another event after the first of the year on emotional wounds and getting to the root of our depression.

Isaiah 53:5 says, “But He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.”(NLT) Yes, Jesus suffered so we could be forgiven and have eternal life, but He also came to give us an abundant life. For those with depression the abundant life seems impossible. Isaiah says He was beaten to make us whole, to put back together the broken pieces of our fractured mind and emotions and that every lash of the whip was to heal our broken hearts so that we can have the abundant life here and now. God desires for us to enjoy the gift of life we have now. The promise of God is not just joy and peace when we get to Heaven, but true joy, peace and life now.

I’m so thankful for the executive team for thinking outside the box and making things like this available at the Summit instead of just focusing on church growth. There is so much out there for us all to learn and grow from that we can take back to our own churches. I’m also very thankful for Brenda Poinsett and her willingness to share her struggles and victories with perfect strangers in such an authentic way. I wish we were all as open and honest as she is. Most importantly I thank God for His leadership, guidance and power. He had a plan long before I decided to go to the Summit and He showed up. Then He showed out by changing lives forever. I am in awe of Him always and forever.

I encourage our denomination to keep offering things like this. I also encourage the members to realize that workshops like Brenda’s are a church growth workshop. If your members aren’t healthy then the church won’t be either. So, take a chance next year and attend one. You never know what God may have planned.