Faith:  Kingdom Currency
Worshipers at yesterday's "faith rally"
Greetings!

Someone posed this question to a restaurant owner: What is it that makes your existing customers to come back and prospective customers to want to come? What is it that excites them? Why should they dine with you and not at another place?

Perhaps we, as a church, need to think similarly and ask the same questions, not in a very literal sense, but in a very practical way.

Our daily tasks bring us side by side with people we deal with in the course of the day.  Do we ever get a chance to tell them about our faith, or to invite them to our "restaurant," that is, our church community?

Nowadays, the time frames in which we work, play and even relax are frenetic, fast-paced segments of time. Are we able to intentionally allocate portions of our precious minutes and seconds to a purposeful "seed-planting" to expand God's Kingdom? Do we take an active part in nurturing members and friends of our church, or do we subscribe to a carefree attitude that this job is for the church staff or leadership to do all by themselves?

It is our faith in Jesus that constrains us to share the good news of the Kingdom of God, and it is the same faith that empowers each one of us to experience the signs and wonders that we, through the Holy Spirit are able, not only to witness but to perform.

The Church Staff
 
FAITH GROWS
 
 
It is not unusual for First Sundays to become catalysts for something we need or desire as a spiritual family, and yesterday was one of them. The tone was set during the Praise and Worship time when the presence of God, through the Holy Spirit, was strongly palpable. As we transitioned into the Sunday Service, which is of a different format on First Sundays at Gospel Life, we began to hear testimony after testimony of faith, on how the Lord has led us in the past and how we need to remain steadfast in that faith as we look towards the future.
 
Linda Rivera, Pastor Romen's wife, urged us to be united in claiming  the promise God made to King Jehoshahat not to be discouraged but to focus entirely on God's power and not ours, to pursue God's interests, not our selfish desires. 
 
She related how our church was so united in faith and met together frequently when we were praying for the acquisition of the Gospel Life property called Miracle Hill years ago, and she pointed out that loving each other helps the church to grow, just like the early church grew daily.
 
Tessa Charles shared with us how easy it is to forget what God has done for us in the past, much like the children of Israel vacillated between trusting and not trusting Him through the years of their wilderness experience.  She read from her journal from some years back and recounted all the assurances she received during the "awesome ride" that goes with faith.  "My God is faithful" were the words she made us think about.
 
Eunice Alinsod told us that Miracle Hill to her means freedom, peace, happiness, fulfillment -- a place "sealed by God," a place of no arguments, no competition, a place of calmness -- a haven. Although "we don't know what to do, don't be discouraged. I will praise You, I will be filled with joy, I will sing praises to You." That is her way to express her faith.
 
Archie & Cesar Cabrera expressed thankfulness for all that they are blessed with, for the blue skies, the trees around us, their children and many other things. Archie was especially thankful for becoming a part of the Lion's Den family because of the direction it gave for her life and her family.  They shared how thankfulness opens the door to greater things.
 
Myrna Aguila brought back her recollections of their faith and prayers way before Gospel Life acquired the church property. She had the word of encouragement to trust Jesus because "He is closer than the air we breathe."  She said that our greatest adventure is in knowing Him abundantly and that we need to recognize that we are on the threshhold of a new adventure.  She urged us to cling tightly to Jesus' hand and to remember Ephesians 3:17, 18 so we do not forget how wide, how deep, how long, how high is God's love for us.
 
Tito Cabrera further encourged us while he related his experiences in helping to rebuild Gospel Life church from what was left of it from a fire that made a mess of the structure from within. And, too, because of faith and the urgings of his present co-students at the Lion's Den School, he experienced a miraculous healing of his weakened heart condition, subsequently confirmed by his doctor.  He left us with God's word in Zechariah 4:6 where it says, "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts."
 

Aaron Alcaraz, in a rich baritone voice, accompanied himself on the piano as he sang a classic hymn, "Jesus Paid It All," with his own interpretation of the music, and a stanza or two of his own more contemporary words and music,  interspersed with the classic. It was a very emotionally moving song that allowed us to soak more into our faith experience. 
 
Week of Prayer and Fasting

Members of Gospel Life Community received a letter from Founding Pastors John and Jessie Tulio at the latter part of last week asking them to prepare for a period of fasting and prayer which will be launched next week, Sunday, July 8, following the Core Group meeting planned on that day after the Fellowship Lunch. A special prayer session during that meeting will be held.

The following Sunday, July 15, is being declared as a special day of fasting and prayer for the whole church. In preparation for this period, Pastor John suggested reading chapter 20 of 2 Chronicles "over and over" as the "battlecry of Jehoshaphat's army will be the theme of our special time of seeking God in fasting and prayer."

He also asked us, if possible, to download/play and listen to the message that he preached on August 17, 2008 from our church's website (www.gospellifecommunity.org) in the mp3 file archive section, entitled "The Coin of the Realm." He asked that special attention be given to the last part and conclusion of the message.

In this message, Pastor John speaks of faith as the currency of the kingdom of God. With faith we are able to access the heavenly realm and lay hold of what God has already spoken into existence in the spiritual realm.

There is also a Lifeline article, "In the Valley of Jehoshaphat," retrievable from the church website's archives, dated May 17, 2009. It is appropriate reading before and during the coming week of fasting and prayer.

Please be aware of this scheduled event for our entire church family.
 
 
Invite Someone To Church

This coming Sunday, July 8, is a good time to invite someone to come to church with you. George Rivera, founder and CEO of Total Resources International, will share his testimony with us.  As a successful businessman he credits everything he and his company achieves to no one but God.

Total Resources International is a Walnut-based company whose main products are equipment, tools and gadgets needed in case of emergency, in the home, at school, in the office and in the car. This company has become the primary supplier of emergency articles in the country. 

Mr. Rivera was a recent guest speaker at the Men's Breakfast Meeting held in May.  The Praise Team from his workplace will participate in the Good News Hour service next Sunday.

Mustard Seed Faith in Business

  

"He replied, 'Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, "Move from here to there" and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.'" - Matthew 17:20

 

Does God do miracles in business? Is He concerned about the mountains we face in our work life? Does He want us to bring the everyday problems we face in the workplace to His attention? The answer to every one of these questions is yes. God wants to be involved in every aspect of our lives.

 

Gunnar Olson, the Swedish founder of the International Christian Chamber of Commerce, tells a story about God performing a miracle in his own business a few years ago. He owns a plastics company in Sweden. They make huge plastic bags that are used to cover bales of hay in the farmlands across Europe. It was the harvest season and they were getting ready to ship thousands of pallets of these bags to their customers. More than 1,000 pallets were ready to ship when an alarming discovery was made. Every bag on the warehouse floor had sealed shut from top to bottom. Scientists declared the entire stock as worthless trash. Nothing could be done. The company would go out of business.

 

Gunnar, his wife, and children sought the Lord in prayer about this catastrophe. The Holy Spirit spoke through various family members. The wife said, "If God can turn water into wine, what are plastics?" The daughter said, "I don't believe this is from the Lord. We should stand against it." Gunnar sensed they were to trust God for a miracle in this situation. They began to pray. They took authority over this mountain of a problem based on Matthew 17, which gave them the authority to cast a mountain into the sea if faith only the size of a mustard seed could be exercised. The following Monday they went to the warehouse and laid hands on every pallet asking the Lord to restore the bags to their original condition. It took several hours. Later, the employees began to inspect the bags. As they inspected the bags, they discovered that every single bag had been restored to its original condition! An incredible miracle had taken place.

 

What obstacles have been placed in your life that need a miracle today? Could God be setting the stage in your life for you to trust Him at new levels you've never trusted before? God sets the stage to allow His power to be revealed for those willing to exercise the faith of a mustard seed. All things are possible with God. 
 

(Today God Is First (TGIF) devotional message, Copyright by Os Hillman, Marketplace Leaders.)
 
Meditation

..."Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit," says the Lord Almighty. Lord, empower me by Your Spirit today. I do not want to do anything out of vanity or just trying to "climb every mountain" on my own. I long to be led by Your Spirit, not by human initiative and man-inspired positive thinking.
 
Thank You for making me a positive, joyful person, full of Your Spirit, inspired by Your Word, and busy about Your work as I go through daily life. I pray that all I do will glorify You and be evidence of Your power and Your might and Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.