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December 18, 2012: Volume 2, Number 4
In This Issue
BACK 40 MATCHING GIFT OPPORTUNITY!
Feature: IT'S NOT JUST A BIRTH, BUT A WHOLE NEW BEGINNING
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
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MERRY CHRISTMAS!
The Christmas season provides the perfect opportunity to pause and thank God for His incredible blessings ... and especially for His Son.

We pray as you celebrate Christmas, you will see why it is not just about a birth, but about a whole new beginning.

From all the team at 30 60 100 MINISTRIES, we wish you and yours a joyous Christmas and Happy New Year!

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BACK 40 MATCHING GIFT OPPORTUNITY! 
A special thank you to those of you who have already become Back 40 Backers -- partners who support us in providing short-term coaching, equipping, and training to believers living remote areas.

A most gracious donor has designated a $5,000 matching-gift for Back 40. This means your gift now will be doubled -- up to $5,000! Will you help us proceed with this exciting campaign and make this match as soon as possible? Learn more and give here .

Thank you for your prayers and gifts which help us cultivate the next generation of believers in the Back 40.
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What People Say About The Back 40


"How is the Back 40 project going? We have your card on our table and are praying about our end-of-year giving. With just 3 weeks left, we'll be making our decision to help soon." N.C.

featureFeature:  THE ULTIMATE GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER:
It's Not Just a Birth. It's a Whole New Beginning. 
A mother and father look down at their new baby in love and wonder. What will that child become? In the delivery room, they have no way of knowing what the future holds for that baby.

the-nativity-story-2 Not so with Jesus.  Imagine the scene for Mary and Joseph after their firstborn arrives:

"OK, Mom and Dad, here's the deal. Your son is going to be the world's top counselor of all time ... the kind of advocate that is full of compassion and smarts and never loses a case. People will rely on him for his strength and might. He'll become a parent who never runs out of energy, time, or resources, and to top it all off - he will be the leader of the all-time supreme royal family and the one person in the universe responsible for finally bringing the world a lasting peace!"

That's pretty much what God announces in Isaiah 9:6: "He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

It's Not Just a Birth. It's a Beginning.

It's tempting to think of Christmas as simply the celebration of a baby's birth, albeit a remarkable one. We've read the story and know how it will turn out ... don't we?

Perhaps not. We tend to miss the implications of Jesus' birth as a whole new way of viewing the world's governance. Yes, nations continue to operate under the direction of leaders both upright and flawed. International relations take three steps forward and two steps back. Bureaucracies become bloated. But all the while, Jesus' arrival presented the ultimate "government" takeover. "Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end" (Isaiah 6:7). Jesus' birth may have been subtle, but it was the beginning of a reign that continues to grow and will never stop.

God knew in the delivery room (the manger) what was in store for that baby. He'd even foretold it.

Insider Access

And we're a part of it. Through Jesus, God has given us direct access to the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

This Christmas, as you look at the Baby in the manger, don't sell Him short - nor the access He gives you. As a Christian, you're an "insider." How will participate in the reign that has no end?

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  Growth Point

   

gold-sunrise-and-clouds Believers have direct, insider access to the world's True Leader.  

 

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Scripture


He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. (Isaiah 9:6-7, NIV)  

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Prayer Point
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  • "Christmas is not just about a baby, but a whole new way of looking at how the world is governed." How do you respond?
  • Which of Jesus' titles (Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace) means most to you and why?
  • Do you think of yourself as an "insider" with "direct access"? Why or why not?
What People Are Saying ...

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Image by Olga Palma

Thanks so much for the very encouraging article in the last issue of The Cultivator. I really hadn't thought in terms of being "desperate for God" before. This has convicted me of the need for that attitude.


Doug C.


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