Foundations: Scripture // Bible Reading Plans for 2011

This Sunday we are going to be starting our series on "Foundations" with a look at the spiritual discipline of Scripture reading. 

Why read the whole Bible?
One of the great attributes of the Bible is that it tells a story.  Coming from a "church" background, I was surprised when I got to Boston University and discovered that several of my most well educated, secular college friends were not familiar with some of the most well-known Bible stories like Noah and Abraham.  I also found in church among my generation few attendees have actually read through the whole Bible.

To not have read the whole Bible and become familiar with it is similar to only reading a couple chapters in the middle of a large novel.  You don't know all the characters; you can't figure out the whole plot; and you could even get a totally confused about what the author is trying to communicate.

Bible Reading Plans
Therefore, it is important to read through the whole Bible.  To do that you will likely need a plan and a community.  There are 3 resources below that will help you plan for how to read through the Bible in 1 year.  My wife (Betsy) and I are going to be using the plan and resources that Journey Church in St. Louis has generously provided online (see option #2 below). 

I want to enourage everyone involved in Fenway Church to consider committing to do a plan together with others in our church; the accountability, encouragement and discussion that will come out of it will be valuable.  A building is only as strong as it's foundations - let's dig deep together this year!

1) 10 reading plans from the EVS Study Bible website (a study Bible I use): http://www.esv.org/resources/reading-plans-devotions/

*recommended*
2)  This plan was developed by Journey Church (an Acts 29 church in St. Louis).  It involves reading only 3 chapters (1 NT, 2 OT) a day with an an off day every 4 days.  If you are like me, the off day is key for catching up or reflecting on what you have red.  To make this plan possible, they pull out 12 of the more confusing and dense books of the Bible and provide video snapshots that provide a background for the book and then encourage you to speed read them in one sitting to catch the main ideas of the book. Here are the links:

Vision and explanation of plan includuing guidelines for how to read the Bible effectively and an introduction to the Bible's mega-narrative (I highly recommend reading through this .pdf it is a rich resource!)
http://journeyon.net/sites/default/files/attachements/blog/BibleReadingPlan.pdf

Introductory and Snapshot videos to each book of the Bible.  (I watched two and they were great, hoping the rest will have similar quality and content)
http://journeyon.net/media/engage-scripture

3) A pair of bookmarks that let you check off days and leave buffer days for each month. It more typical of traditional Bible plans in that it has you read from 4 different parts of the Bible each day. http://www.navpress.com/uploadedFiles/15074%20BRP.dj.pdf

Thoughts for the FenFam as we head into 2011

To my Fenway Church Family (#fenfam on twitter),

I love the start of a new season.  I think God wired me that way.  I love the anticipation of Opening Day, the preparation for the start of new YMCA basketball league season where everyone starts at 0-0 and no matter how bad your teams was last year you have a shot at the championship this year. 

I love looking at a blank canvass and dreaming about what could be painted on it (although I have no skill in painting - I can DREAM up a killer picture in my mind).

And, I love church planting because God takes a small group of messed up people and creates something with their shared lives that impacts not only the world but eternity.  He takes our past seasons and our unknown futures, and He creates a masterpiece.

So as we begin 2011, I am excited.  It's a new year, and many people are considering changes that they want to make to their lives.  Some of us have had time to relax and reflect over Christmas. As I did yesterday I was driving back from western Pennsylvania... 

I was considering the New Year, what ideas needed to come through in the preaching series, ways our church could grow and work together more this year... and God directed my thoughts from all my plans, desires, and dreams to past New Year's Eves and how every year for the last 10+ years when I've looked back at the year that is ending and thought about the year that is begining I've had the same thought:
I wish I had prayed and shared my faith more last year.  I want to pray and share my faith more this year.

To me if you read the New Testament and you read what Jesus said and watch how he and his disciples lived, if you forget about church structures and strageties and leadership gatherings, if you step a side from the discussion of how the band sounded and how long the message went, if you just read the gospels and the book of Acts, you can't really escape this message that comes pulsating through.  Life is about knowing Jesus and loving others. 

The main way I get to know Jesus is through prayer.  Prayer the way Jesus taught it - closing the door to everything on the outside, being alone with him and his Word (the Bible), and opening up our hearts, minds, and mouths to him.  And prayer the way the disciples did it - gathering daily to seek God together and experiencing his power corporately.

The way I love others is by sharing Jesus with them.  Jesus said, "What does it gain a man if he gains the whole world but forfeits his soul." (Mark 8:36)  We can be people's best friends, we can be servants of the poor but if we enable others through our love and companionship to gain things here on earth but we never introduce them to Jesus we have done them a great disservice - they will forfeit their souls. 

So for another year in a row, I am setting my heart on Jesus.  I want to follow him to the place of prayer, and I want to share him with those God places around me.

In January at Fenway Church, we are going to be talking about Foundations - the practices of scripture reading, being filled with the Holy Spirit, working in team, and confessing our sin that root us in the our foundation stone, Jesus. What I've discovered is that these practices drive me to prayer and witness.  My prayer for our church this year is that as we discover Jesus together we would gain an even greater capacity to pray with him and love like him in 2011.

Grace and peace to all God's adopted kids at Fenway Church and to those who don't know they've been adopted yet may you come to know the Father this year...

David W.

Metro - Music venue ‘Church’ is also rocking Jesus

Metro - Music venue ‘Church’ is also rocking Jesus

Check out this article about our church by Justin A. Rice that landed on the front page of the Metro Boston on December 20, 2010.  Great publicity and positive article!  Great job by Justin and the Metro.

Trilogy Project

Our Newfrontiers churches in Boston are committed to working together not only across the globe with our family of churches but also with one another here in the city. To see Boston transformed and the nations reached, we must continue to remain committed to training present and emerging leaders within our church communities to disciple people, plant churches, and reach nations.

The Trilogy Project is a valuable training opportunity.  It is a college-level three-year biblical and leadership training program that offers courses in biblical theology, biblical hermeneutics, leadership theory and practice, missions, and church history to equip students for effective leadership within the local church.

Abundant Grace Church and Fenway Church are collaborating together to form a group of leaders and emerging leaders from both churches who will participate in Trilogy Online (the online version of the Trilogy Project).  We believe working together as churches will give students greater exposure to different giftings, experiences, and methods and allow for stronger and more well rounded leaders.

To learn more about Trilogy visit their website - http://www.trilogyproject.org/.  If you are interested in participating in this course, please contact us via email  community@fenwaychurch.org.

Trilogy is a training initiative of the Newfrontiers USA family of churches (www.newfrontiersusa.org), but it is not restricted to those who are part of a Newfrontiers USA church.

Newfrontiers Boston Joint Service Report

Yesterday, three different churches from the Boston area gathered together to worship Jesus.  It was certainly a faith-building time.  I was encouraged by the full house on a Thanksgiving weekend (a weekend when a lot of people are gone in Boston) and by the strong sense of family and kinship that pervaded the service and the fellowship after over coffee and holiday treats.  So many welcoming smiles, introductions, re-introductions, and catching up with people you had not seen in months.

The most encouraging aspect of the gathering was the stories told by several people of how God had been working in their lives through dreams, healings, the salvation of family members, and the start of seeker-oriented Bible studies.  One particular story of a baby who had 60% hearing loss and who doctors determined would eventually go deaf being completely healed to the astonishment of the nurses and doctors was incredibly inspiring and a real encouragement to perserve in prayer.

We also made an announcement about how our two Newfrontiers churches in Boston are planning to work together more closely in training present and emerging leaders to fulfill our call to love others, transform the city, and serve nations.  To learn more click here to view our announcement about the Trilogy Project or visit us on facebook at www.facebook.com/newfrontiersboston .

Newfrontiers Boston City-Wide Service (Nov. 22)

This Sunday (November 28) @ 10:30AM, we will join with our fellow Newfrontiers' church in Boston, Abundant Grace, to celebrate God's goodness and Jesus' greatness. Come meet with God and catch a vision for what God is doing in Boston! There will be no Fenway services at the club.

NEWFRONTIERS BOSTON CITY-WIDE SERVICE
SUNDAY NOV. 28 10:30AM

ABUNDANT GRACE CHURCH 77 GUEST ST. BRIGHTON
At the Corner of Life & Guest Streets

Directions by Car click here

Directions by Bus (MBTA) Take the 57 bus to 'Cambridge St @ N Beacon St' and walk 1/2 mile down North Beacon St and turn right on Life Street. For map & walking directions click here.

Month of Prayer in November

Month of Prayer in November from David W. Hill on Vimeo.

From Jaeson Ma's visit in mid-October where hundreds of people committed to following Jesus whole heartedly and praying for awakening on their campuses to the 6,000+ people that gathered at Boston University for the Boston Night of Worship, http://www.bnow2010.com/, it is evident God is at work in the city of Boston.

Now is not a time to sit back and watch the ride but to align ourselves with God's plan for our city and church.  Jesus stated in John 5:19, that he only did what he saw the Father doing.  It is not surprising then that in the gospels Jesus is frequently found arising early and escaping late to the place of prayer with his Father.  It is when the church united in corporate pray in Acts 2 and Acts 4 aligning themselves with God's plan for their city that thousands were saved.

If we sense God may be at work in an unusual, as we receive prophetic words (which are weighing in this season of prayer) about Fenway church becoming a place where worship development explodes and many churches are planted out of, and as regional leaders call for an end to "self-preservation" and to greater cooperation, we must give ourselves to the place of prayer encountering the Holy Spirit in all his power and discovering God's plan and will for our lives, church, and city.

Our first early morning prayer meeting of the month was one of our largest early morning turnouts ever.  Fenway Church let's join together in the place of prayer this month at Ruggles Baptist Church - 874 Beacon Street, Boston.

Monday November 8 @ 7PM
Tuesdays & Thursdays 6-7AM

5 Pillars of Manhood & Womanhood

This Sunday we had Jaeson Ma (http://www.jaesonma.com/) speak at our church.  We were impacted by his challenge to embrace discipleship (bearing the outward fruit of becoming like Jesus that comes from an inward experience of God's grace), his encouragement to plant 12 churches in 5 years (only God can help us do that!), and his vision for more instruments, more teams, more songs, and more prayer to fuel an extraordinary outbreak of the worship of Jesus in the Fenway.

Recently, Jaeson wrote a blog entry that went viral (the servers for his blog went down because of all the hits!) called the 5 Pillars of Manhood.  I believe all the hits highlight a serious hunger in our culture to know what manhood is really all about; a subject we are addressing in our church's series on Sex, Love & Identity.  Personally, I have a life-long commitment to train young men to be real men.  We need fathers, brothers, and men of courage to step up in our churches and culture.  Jaeson's post also raised some comments from my friends - what does becoming a godly woman look like?

So, I've first put together some scripture references for all you guys to look up that will show why Jaeson's 5 pillars of manhood are Biblical. So first read Jaeson's blog entry. Then, get your Bible out, roll up your sleeves & go see what God has to say about your identity.

5 Pillars of Manhood
1) Lead - Titus 2:6-8, Ephesians 5:23, I Timothy 2:12-14
Remember the call to lead in a marriage relationship is a call to servant leadership that starts with serving your sisters now, see below.
2) Protect - Genesis 2:15, I Timothy 6:11-12, I Timothy 5:1-2
The word "keep" in Genesis means tend/guard/protect.
3) Provide - Proverbs 24:27, Genesis 2:15, Matthew 25:14-30, Ephesians 5:25-29
In other words get a job so you can get married and provide for your wife (or give to the kingdom), be provider not a consumer.
4) Integrity - Daniel 1:8 Corinthians 6:18, I Timothy 6:13-14
We must follow through, prove our commitment, and be culture shapers not cultural sponges.
5) Courage - I John 2:13-14, Matthew 10:16-20, Joshua 1:6-7
It takes courage to preach the gospel, start a family, and live as a light in this world. Do it!

And for the ladies... 

 

Note that I spoke with my mother (an amazing woman of God, teacher, and mother of 6!) who provided the majority of this material and scripture references as an older woman instructing younger women (per Titus 2:3).  When you read this, hear her voice coming through. Let's go!

5 Pillars of Womanhood

1) Worship - Luke 7:36-50, John 5:15-20, John 12:1-11, Luke 2:36-38, Exodus 38:8
God is seeking women after his own heart.  He is passionately in love with you and wants you to be passionately in love with him.  All of our lives (men and women) are an act of worship, but women are especially seen as lavish worshippers in the Bible.  The sinful woman washing Jesus' feet with her tears.  The Samaritan woman at the well seeking a place of worship.  Mary breaking her alabaster vial.  And Anna's life of continual prayer and fasting modeled after the Old Testament women who ministered to the Lord at the entrance to his Presence, the tabernacle.  A woman's passion should be to please her Lord through a life centered around the extravagant worship of Him. Single woman have a unique opportunity to be single-mindedly devoted to God.  Fight being distracted by trying to find mister right or getting ensnared in wordly pursuits.  Your creativity, devotion, love, and emotions are all meant to be used as expressions of worship and praise to God.  He loves to minister to you and loves when you minister back to Him.  You were created for worship and relationship.

2) Worry-Free - I Corinthians 7:34-35, Luke 10:41-42, I Peter 1:3-4, Matthew 6:50
God wants you to be worry free!  Free from all worry! He doesn't want you to be anxious about your appearance, adornments, or about pleasing anybody (if you are single, wives you get to please your husbands!).  God has actually called you to be anxious about only one thing the development of your spirit in holiness and devotion to him.  That is something HE is glad to do inside of you - his yoke is easy and his burden is light - he delights to shape you into his own image.  He wants you to be a woman at rest in the midst of busyness, at peace in the midst of turmoil. Like Jesus he wants you to have a quiet and gentle spirit (Matthew 11:28-30) that is unfazed by the proliferation of tasks or the judgments of others.

3) Inner Beauty - I Peter 1:3-4, I Timothy 2:9-10, I Timothy 3:11, Proverbs 31:30-31 
My mom says, "God wants us as women to be focused on our inner person not our outward appearance. We are not to be defined by 'being wearers of costly garments' but by the inner beauty God created us with (Genesis 1:27)."  The devil subverts your true beauty causing you to compare yourself with others or malign them with your words.  You were created for so much more.  You don't need to be in a relationship to prove your worth or have a boyfriend to tell you are beautiful.  God knows you are beautiful and created you to be respected for who you are on the inside - not by success, money, power, or appearance.  God loves your healthy humility that is based on your sense of self-worth and your respectable modesty that is based on the knowledge you do not need to be seen by others.  You are called to be trustworthy and temperate.  It is your inner beauty that he longs for others to know - a gentle and quiet heart at rest in the midst of a world that glorifies fleeting charm and fading outward beauty.  Your fear and knowledge of the Lord is what will bring you praise even from an unbelieving world.  The way of humility and inner beauty is the path to honor, success, and affirmation.

4) Devotion - I Corinthians 7:34 (NIV), Ephesians 5:22, I Timothy 5:10, Genesis 2: 18, Acts 21:9
Women are created to nurture others.  They naturally nurture growing babies in their womb and are called to create a nurturing home environment for their husbands, children, and the church.  The word devotion means ardently dedicated and loyal.  This describes so many of the wives, mothers, and sisters I know.  Women are called in this order to be devoted:

To the Lord.
To their husbands.
To their children.
To the church.

Wives model Jesus' obedience, humility, and servanthood when they submit to their husbands leadership and make their first focus their home, husband, and children.  The Proverbs 31 wife finds times for both her primary call of homemaking and for business opportunities!  Go girls! Women, you are called to be helpers just like the Holy Spirit is a powerful helper to us (John 14:26).  Godly women devote themselves to serving the church and meeting the needs of its poor and ministries.  They are deacons and prophetesses, servants and queens, judges and mothers, church planters and worship leaders, and so much more.  Women, your devotion to God and your devotion to others reveal the loving heart of God and the majesty of his character.  He is 100% dedicated to the fulfillment of your desires and is ardently loyal to his daughters who bring him unimaginable joy.

5) Works - I Timothy 2:9-10, Acts 9:36-39, Luke 8:3, I Timothy 5:14, Titus 2:5, Proverbs 31:10-31
Women, you are called to good works. It is the outward fruit of your inner life with Jesus.  Dorcas, who is one of the few people ever raised from the dead beside Jesus, was described as full of good works and charity.  Her care for the poor was exemplary.  Some of Jesus disciples, who were women, supported Jesus' ministry out of their own means.  Women, especially single women, can use the skills and talents God has given them to generate wealth for the kingdom. Women are called to be managers, entrepreneurs, home makers, real estate buyers, and to use their creative abilities in fashion, business, the arts and more.  Women are called to work hard and plan ahead.  You are to maximize every gift God has given you to reveal how great God is to others.  Your good works will praise you and bring glory to God.

Why I am going to the Boston Night of Worship (Oct 29)

Fenway Family, let's join with the body of Christ in this moment.  DW

http://www.bnow2010.com/

Throughout scripture, praise is a weapon that releases captives, snatches victory away from the hands of defeat, and delivers God's people. It is the sound of praise that drove demons from the mind of Saul, tore down the walls of Jericho, broke the chains off the apostles' feet, and delivered the city of Jerusalem from certain destruction. Praise is the sound of worship when still in captivity, joy when foundations are laid yet a work not complete, and jubilation when your enemies lie defeated at the bottom of the Red Sea.

Too often the church has chosen between apathy and distress rather than victory or defeat. A people that have been bought out of captivity, cleansed by the blood, delivered out of darkness, adopted into God's family, and made alive together with Jesus should never be forced to choose between the twin evils of lethargy and fear. Sadly, today if you were to read mainstream newspapers or some Christian newsletters, you would be tempted to think the church in America has been neutered, the age of Islam is at hand, and the moral decay of America may have at last tipped the scales towards judgment. Anger and pessimism, sorrow and sadness, complaining and fear seem to mark the church. Efforts to pray focus on the oppressing gloom and increasing darkness of our nation rather than the glorious future God has promised his church.

It is therefore no “small coincidence” that God has chosen to raise up in this region and for such a time as this a young man from the continent of Africa, Zenzo Matoga, who resonates with a sound that casts out fear, proclaims freedom, announces victory, and calls the Church to set their eyes on Jesus. In a region that has for decades lived under the oppressive atmosphere of man-made religion, humanistic education, and self-glorifying achievement, a movement (Boston Night of Worship http://www.bnow2010.com/ ) has emerged that echos the cry of Paul, “Set your mind on things above (where Christ is seated at the right hand of God!). And not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:1-2)

I believe the favor God has bestowed upon Zenzo and the Boston Night of Worship (as witnessed by the thousands that gathered and the hundreds that were turned away at last fall's Night of Worship at MIT) is not just the result of individual or corporate consecration or expectation, but a sovereign move of God in which he intends to shake his church free from apathy and fear and deliver a death blow to the strongholds of humanism and intellectualism that have for far too long kept New England ensnared. I will be the first to confess that a spirit of heaviness has pervaded and controlled much of New England and its church. It is my understanding from scripture that the God-ordained prescription for a spirit of heaviness is to put on a garment of praise (Isaiah 61). This means putting off seasons of mourning, shedding the rags and ashes of solemn fasts, and standing in the beauty and gladness that have been bestowed on us in Christ.

Read more »

Roads in Fenway Closed Sunday September 26

Please be aware as you plan your travel to our Sunday gathering.

DCR WILL CLOSE SEVERAL ROADWAYS

TO ACCOMMODATE “HUB ON WHEELS” BICYCLE RIDE

The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) will close several roadways in Boston on Sunday to accommodate the thousands of riders expected for the Hub on Wheels charity bicycle ride through the city.

WHEN: Sunday

Sept. 26, 2010

7 a.m. – 11 a.m.

WHERE: Storrow Drive and Soldiers Field Road

Westbound (outbound) from Charles Circle to Eliot Bridge

Eastbound (inbound) from Eliot Bridge to Bowker Overpass



Bowker Overpass (which carries traffic from the Fenway onto Storrow Drive)

The Fenway

Between Westland Avenue and Boylston Street



Boylston Street

Between Ipswich Street and Hemmingway Street

Park Drive

Between Boylston Street and Brookline Avenue

University Road



Agassiz Road

Riverway

Southbound (outbound) from Park Street to Brookline Avenue

Morrissey Boulevard

Right lane northbound from Freeport Street to the entrance of UMass/Boston

Exit ramp from Interstate 93 northbound onto Morrissey Boulevard

Closed from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Sex, Love & Identiy Series - Starting September 26

Click here to view Facebook Event

Blackberries, up to the second tweets & 100s of facebook friends. Are we missing anything? Are life long partners, deep friendships & committed relationships still possible? In a 21st century city where lonely people feign security and views on sex, love & relationships are constantly evolving, is there a path to meaningful living?

Discover why God Loves Sex, what Real Love is, how Sexuality & Identity shape us & how Fulfilling Relationships are possible in our new series “Sex, Love & Identity.”

Sundays 11AM @ Fenway Church

September 26 - God Loves Sex

October 3 - Real Love

October 10 - Sexuality & Identity

October 17 – Fulfilling Relationships







NEW AUDIO PAGE

By now, I hope you have visited our new website: http://www.fenwaychurch.org 

It looks great and has a good amount of information about our church and ways to connect with our community.

In the process of transitioning the website, all the links for our past audio files were destroyed.  I've taken down all the "NEW AUDIO" entries on this blog.  I encourage you to visit our NEW MEDIA PAGE - http://www.fenwaychurch.org/media and click on the media player to watch and listen to most of our past messages right on your web browser.  It is an awesome resource.

An Impossible Life

Do you reach out for things that are beyond yourself?  Are you living for dreams that currently seem unattainable?  Does the thought of something beyond your control terrify you or cause you to want to dive right in?
Too often we let dreams and visions that we've had fade into the rear view mirror because they seem impossible or impractical.  We settle for a life of low expectations and therefore fewer dissapointments.  But is that  how we were meant to live?

I like to think about a few fishermen 2,000 years ago who were coming back from an exhausting night of work.  No fish = no money.  They were broke, tired, and probably stank.  They had no expectations, no dreams, and seemingly no future.  I doubt any of them could have imagined leaving the shores of Galilee. Yet on their way back from work, something happened. They met a man named Jesus. They'd probably seen him before even heard him speak. They respected him enough to begrudingly and faithlessly throw their nets over "the other side of the boat" like a kid that says "if I have to" and then half-heartedly picks up a handful of the hundreds of toy pieces he needs to clean up.

What they didn't know was because of their simple obedience they were about to move from having an idea of who Jesus was to encountering his life-changing power.  They threw their nets into a situation that seemed impossible and before they knew it they were exploding with fish!  So improbable and impossible seemed this turn of events that Peter was left terrified begging Jesus to leave him alone because he felt too sinful to be around this man who held such divine power.

Jesus didn't leave Peter grovelling on the deck of his boat; instead he invited Peter to leave his nets and follow him.  And Peter, his brothers, and his friends began a journey into what moments earlier they would thought to have been an impossible life.

A few year later, Peter and friends would find themselves alone in an upper room in a city which had mocked and killed their best friend and heavenly emissary, Jesus.  He had commissioned them with another impossible task to testify to the whole world about who He was. 

Peter and friends threw their nets in one last time.  Out of simple obedience, they hosted a series of daily prayer meetings, and one morning they encountered the life-changing power of Jesus once again. This time in a different but even more powerful form - the Holy Spirit.  The result was 3,000 people met Jesus that day and started their own impossible life. The world would never been the same.

Throw your net on the other side. Pray with Jesus. Encounter his power. Live an impossible life. Join us at...

Fenway Church's Fall Kickoff Prayer Meeting

Monday September 13 @ 7PM

874 Beacon Street  Boston  2nd floor

http://www.fenwaychurch.org/calendar.php?pageID=6

Fenway Families Magician Show @ Ramler Park (Saturday Aug 21 @ NOON)

Ramler Park is located across from 139 Peterborough Street between Kilmarnock St. & Park Dr. in the heart of the Fenway.

AtsMagic
http://www.atsmagic.com/

C.R.E.A.T.E Boston

Renee Deuplisea joined our new church plant shortly after it launched in the Fall of 2008.  Her energy, enthusiasm, and love for Jesus were contagious.  She connected with our friends at Operation Peace in the Fenway and began working there with their after school program after graduating from Wheelock College. She made a huge impact on the lives of young people in the Fenway and represented Jesus so well to many families in the Fenway neighborhood.

At a Sunday meeting at Fenway Church, God began to speak to Renee about connecting participants in the higher education institutions of the Fenway to the needs of Boston residents throughout the city who were dropping out of high school, suffering from increasing violence, and coping with fatherlessness. 

Out of this vision and a desire to follow and become like Jesus, C.R.E.A.T.E. Boston was born.  

This Sunday (August 15), we sent Renee off on a new adventure to start an intentional community in Mattapan that will serve the community, run Alphas, and practice intentional living as a community.


Renee said, "Speaking at Fenway went great, and the offering for CREATE (which was a last second idea from a Fenway member) put us in the clear for paying the rest of the apartment fees."

Renee is an answer to our prayers and vision for Fenway Church that we would "gather to scatter."  We want to see people gathered to Jesus and his church right here in the Fenway and then see them scatter to the lost and broken places of our world starting right here in the city of Boston.  Our prayer is that many more would follow Renee's example as together we seek change the expression of Christianity and plant community transforming churches throughout the world.

Check out Renee's C.R.E.A.T.E. Boston website: http://createboston.webs.com/

Celebration Northeast 2010 // No Sunday Meeting @ Club (July 25)

FENWAY CHURCH WILL NOT BE MEETING AT OUR NORMAL LOCATION (69 KILMARNOCK ST) ON JULY 25

Join us on Sunday July 25 9:30AM at the Gordon College Chapel for a celebration and a time to learn more about God's calling on our lives was we gather together as a family of churches from across the Northeast region. It's our time to celebrate our God and move forward together on His mission!


Learn more at http://celebration.newfrontiersusa.org/ne-home.html
(Note: if you have not registered for the whole weekend you can still join us for free on Sunday morning!)


Directions to Gordon College from Boston

• Take 93 North to 95 North
• Stay on Route 95 North until it separates from Route 128.
• Take Route 128 North towards Gloucester, passing through Peabody, Danvers and Beverly
• Take Exit 17, Grapevine Road
• Turn left at end of ramp, going 0.6 mile to main entrance

View Larger Map

NEW VIDEO: Values: Prayer

Values: Prayer - Sunday June 20, 2010 from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

In the final preach of our "Values" series David looks at prayer, why we pray, and what blocks us from praying.

NEW VIDEO: Values: Giving

Values: Giving - Sunday June 13, 2010 from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

In the second installment of our "Values" series David explores the value of giving and what that means for our lives.

The Story of Fenway Church’s Montreal Missions Trip

Unless the Father Draws Him
The Story of Fenway Church’s Montreal Missions Trip
By Jeremy Jackson, 2010

The following events take place between Thursday, May 28th and Monday, May 31st. Events occur in real time . . . . like in 24. Inspiration for this report was also taken from Bill Simmons’ ESPN.com game-time journals, which usually provide thorough analysis and a good laugh. … and from John 6:44 “No one comes to me [Jesus] unless the Father draws him.” 

[Below is an excerpt from the complete report.  Many stories were removed for brevity-sake.  A more complete and equally entertaining report can be viewed on a note on Jackson’s facebook page, or sent by request.]

Saturday – Evangelism Explosion!
9:00AM
Jackson arrives at Malek’s to wait for Brandon.  Harry is left with Impact Church members at an alternative prayer location.
9:25AM
No Brandon.
9:34AM
No Brandon.
9:36AM
Jackson drives Malek to grocery store to buy groceries for BBQ in the afternoon. Neighbor, Eva, in courtyard sounds like she’ll be there.
10:11AM
Jackson and Malek return, budget in tact, no mayonnaise. No Brandon.
10:13AM
No Brandon.
10:18AM
Heads being scratched. No Brandon. Group prays.
10:28AM
Knock … Knock … Knock. A frustrated Brandon comes through. He had been lost, on the other side of the major park across the street from Malek’s house. Stifled by language barrier, and a dog who just refused to help, it took him some time to find the place. But glad that he had arrived safely, we welcome him and continue in prayer.

10:52AM

Girls go out to witness, Brandon and Jackson stay back and pray.  God, start a church in this apartment building!
12:29PM
Jackson and Malek go out to get propane, while Brandon, Kelsey and Becca go out to witness more. They meet a man who likes Hare Krishna and another who volunteers that he wouldn’t believe even if Jesus appeared to him in a dream.

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Church at the bar - Neighborhoods

Check out this article and video done by Emerson College's online new service on our church!

Church at the bar - Neighborhoods

NEW VIDEO: Values: Community

As a church we value community. Jesus lived in community; the early church lived in community and we must seek to foster and develop community. In this sermon David talks about why we value community and some of the obstacles to participating in community.


Values: Community - June 6, 2010 from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

NEW VIDEO: Stewardship

The final preach in the Fenway Church series on work. Chris explains that fear can hold us back and encourages us to step out of fear into faith so that we can be good stewards of the gifts God has given us.


Stewardship - Overcoming Fear with Faith from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

The War of our Souls (Dave Csinsi)

Dave Csinsi who is a member of our church here in the Fenway wrote a challenging entry entitled "The War for our Souls."  It is usally a good thing when you have guys in your church writing about war :)  Here is an excerpt.

We are in a war, whether we like it or not, a war for our souls. 1 Peter 2:11-12 says "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."

Because of this it's especially helpful to know the definition of war. As stated above it's "an attempt at altering either the psychological hierarchy or the material hierarchy of domination or equality between two or more groups." In other words, it's an attempt to overthrow the dominant power. God is the dominant power. He created the universe, he sustains it, and he rules over it. Satan has come into this creation and has been slowly taking over parts of it. He focuses his energy on individuals. When he does this, when they lose, they no longer recognize God as the dominant power. He loses his rightful place. And because God is a loving God, he doesn't come and over-throw the new hierarchy by force. He comes and knocks gently on the individual's heart and wins them over internally.

The thing that is necessary to recognize, and what made me go "AHA!" is that a war is ocurring because there is...

To read the full article at his blog - click here.

The Church: Lazy or Overworked?

We will finish our series on Work where we've seen God at work, Daniel's example of work in the marketplace, and the importance of preperation this Sunday.  It will be followed by a memorial day extravagnza in the Fens by the Rose Garden.  Here's an except from Dave Csinsi's blog based on his and Jeremy's preach on work 2 weeks ago.

Read how we can avoid both these extremes at his blog:  http://blessedmorning.blogspot.com/2010/05/sundays-preach.html

LAZY CHURCH

Imagine a church where nobody works. There is no one who preaches a sermon, there’s no one who plays a song, there’s no one to set up the chairs. No one works. There’s no one who puts words on a screen with a computer and projector, because there’s no one who sets up the screen to put them on. There’s no one who goes to the printers to get communication cards, there’s no one who watches the kids, there’s no one who smiles and greets people as they come in. The only thing in this lazy church that even remotely resembles work is that everybody shows up. They all show up and what will they get? As we heard a couple weeks ago they might hear an improvised sermon from David, but what else would they get? What else would expect them to get? Nothing! Work makes things happen, obvious yes, but sometimes it’s hard to remember the purpose of work. Work is meant to create. We were made in the image of God, and he creates. We were made to create, therefore we were made to work. Whether that work creates anything tangible or not is not the point. God created the world and part of that creation involved simply separating light from darkness. Sometimes at work you may simply organize papers into categories to be placed into folders. God created the world and part of that creation was simply speaking. Sometimes your job might just be speaking, but those words create new thoughts in the minds of those who hear them. My point is, work is creation, whatever that form may be.

OVER-WORKED CHURCH

Now imagine a church where the pastor and one other person does everything. He preaches the sermon, he plays a song, he sets up the chairs, he gets all the communication cards, his friend somehow manages to simultaneously watch the kids and change the words on the projector. The pastor greets everyone that comes in, he prays for everyone before they leave, he brings in coffee, he gets donuts, he juggles not 2, not 3, but 4 cats, he sings an aria. You get the point. Thankfully, God can do anything and everything, and thankfully he understands that we can't. He can do everything and even he rested on the seventh day of his creation. So what is the balance between overwork and outright laziness? Maybe the bible can give us an idea. 

Why We Are Sending a Team to Montreal this Weekend

By Jeremy Jackson

Jesus said he came to seek and save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). We want to give our lives while we're on earth so that others might know the love of God which has given to us through the cross. Next weekend, from May 28 - May 31st, five members of Fenway Church will be driving six hours north across the Canadian border to spend a few nights in Montreal, Canada.

Currently there are very few born-again Christians in the province of Quebec where Montreal lies. Though at the top of the hill at the center of Montreal there is a cross, very few of the city's inhabitants believe in the God of the Bible. Attendance in Christian churches is lower than 0.1% of the population (although that statistic was taken some time ago, there is not much to suggest that it has changed dramatically). A trip down St. Catherine street, the main drag, and a visitor to the city is treated to a series of images of nude women on giant fluorescent signs advertising strip clubs. Further down the street...

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A Bouncer & a Tattooed Foot (Part 4 of 4)

So, God is definitely moving.  After a couple weeks of going out where it didn't really seem like we were making much of an impact (see last couple entries, I even skipped a week because I was tired), things started picking up.  I thought the following story wouldn't be topped for a while, but God totally broke out last night totally directing us multiple times and ending in a guy getting saved on the spot and instantly being made sober even though moments before he had been in a very different state!  Check out Jeremy's note for the full story here on facebook: "God's Power in Front of Staples."  It's important to note that we had a very powerful time of prayer that morning.  I really believe that the 6AM morning prayer (Tues. - Thurs.) is the fuel for the Thursday night outreaches.  I definitely want to encourage people to come to both.

Two weeks ago, Jeremy and I headed out again, but first we met at his studio apartment in Kenmore Square to pray.  We specifically asked God to show us where to go or who to talk to.  God gave me a picture of different people out in front of their apartments on particular block.

Responding to the leading of the Holy Spirit, Jeremy and I went to the block and walked down it.  Only, one person was on the block a bouncer who was about twice my sized in front a basement bar.  Since, he was the only person out despite our intimidation and the fact that he was on the job we decided to talk to him.  We asked God what to tell him, and I felt God wanted me to tell him about his love.  It felt pretty awkward to go up to a big, strong guy whose job it is to keep kick people out and tell him God loved him!

At first, he was pretty skeptical of us but after talking for a while it became apparent that he was open to spiritual things.  I gave him a copy of the gospel of John, and he told Jeremy he would read it.

We headed down another block, and passed a college aged girl who was sitting out on her front steps.  We usually don't approach girls during the night outreaches since we are guys, but I felt the Holy Spirit prompting to go back and offer to pray for her.  We did, and she shared that today was 9 months since her 16-year old sister had died in a car wreck; she had a beautiful tattoo with her sisters name on her foot - it was a really sad story.  We talked to her awhile and found out she had hardly any experience church and hadn't heard much about who Jesus is, but she was really open to spiritual community and prayer.  As we were about to start praying for her, her friend walked up.  Surprising me, she totally welcomed her friend to join in with us.  We were able to pray with them right in front of her apartment building as people walked by, and she was totally encouraged.

As we left, I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to go back and give her my contact card.  To my surprise (I probably shouldn't have been - God can do anything right?), she emailed me two days later; and she and her friend came to visit our community group that week.  It was amazing.

God is going to keep revealing Jesus to people on the streets even setting them free immediately from the things that keep them from knowing him.  Come see for yourself some time!

Contact me: dwhill@fenwaychurch.org

Read how it all got started: "Jesus, the Streets & Mayor Menino"

His Fingers Had Frozen Off (3 of 4)

Another Thursday night.  This time Red Sox fans and ticket and merchandise hawkers crowded the streets.  People were certainly more interested in enjoying themselves and the atmosphere surrounding the game then talking about spiritual things.   We ended up prayer walking one of the sidewalks of Kenmore Square occasionally talking to passerbys running into alot of apathy and disinterest.   I started to really wishing we had prayed together before meeting out on the street.

A couple homeless guys were out in front of Seven Eleven working the doors for change.  Seemed like everyone even us was trying to get something.  It can be frustrating when your intention is to give something (the good news of Jesus, a healing, and encounter with God), but it starts feeling like you are just trying to get people's attention like any other hawker.  This is why we need the Holy Spirit to open up doors.

In the end, I started talking to one of the homeless guys telling him why we were out here.  Surprisingly, he told me that he needed to "be delivered."  Before I had time to talk to him more about it another man emerged from the store.  I greeted him asking him for his name, whoops mistake (always introduce yourself first!).  He responded rebuking me and telling me to smile.  Haha. Not the reaction I was prepared for.  Here I was trying to share Jesus, and I wasn't evening feeling any joy. 

Convicted I continued to talk to the man when I suddenly realized I had met him before when he was homeless in Copley Square.  I remembered his story of how his hand and 4 fingers were so badly frost bitten one night as he slept in a stupor on the roof of a building that they had to be removed.  This man had a lot of anger towards God, and in a way he had a reason to be.  We struggled to communicate God's love for him.  Finally, a breakthrough came when God gave me a scripture verse for him and told me to offer him some money.  As I did, he suddenly opened up.  He told me how he wanted my help in helping him be reconciled to his 80 year old dad.  I promised to meet him next Tuesday for lunch.

I went away thinking about the pain and the anger that exists on the streets.  On Tuesday, I spent over an hour looking for Sonny; I couldn't find him.  But, God knows his story better than me.  As I prayed for Sonny, it really moved me - those who sow in tears will reap in joy...  Why don't you pray for Sonny too?

Tomorrow: "A Bouncer & A Tatooed Foot"

A Night on Lansdowne Street (2 of 4)

It started in the Fenway Panera Bread talking, praying, asking God to lead us to spiritually hungry and thirsty people.

Jeremy and I headed out around 9pm stopping to talk to a guy who had just gotten off work; we talked for a few moments about Jesus before his bus arrived. He told us to stop by again tomorrow he'd be at the same stop, same time.

I couldn't shake a desire to go to Lansdowne Street across from Fenway Park which is filled with night clubs, bars, and the House of Blues. We walked down the street slowly asking God to move there. We stopped to talk to a couple people, but they weren't interested in talking. As we headed back up the street, we passed a group professionals who we had early seen chatting loudly in front of the House of Blues. Jeremy wanted to go talk to them. I really didn't want to; they seem pretty engaged in their conversation and at least one of them seemed pretty drunk. I doubted they would want to talk. Jeremy headed over, and I tried to remind myself that Jesus was accused of being a drunkard because he hung out with some many of them!

Much to my surprise, Jeremy was able to get into a conversation with them by simply asking if they were willing to talk about spirituality. I got into a conversation with the drunk guy who had grown up in Catholic church but had a real problem with how it was responding to various crisis's it was facing. He even gave me his business card.

They headed back into their fund raising party, and we headed to Kenmore Square asking God that one day crowds would gather there to hear Jesus being proclaimed.

I called the man's number on the business card a couple days later; he had given me his friend's card :) I laughed. I stopped by the bus stop a few days later; the man wasn't there but a teenager who didn't know much about the story of Jesus was. Talked to him for a few minutes, encouraged him to read the gospels, and prayed with him that he would get into college.

You never know what people are thinking on the street. They could be messing with you like that drunk guy, they could be seriously searching, they could just need to be awakened to a fresh reality. We sow seeds. God causes them to grow...

Tomorrow: "His Fingers Froze Off (Sowing in Tears)"

Jesus, the Streets, & Mayor Menino (1 of 4)

Whenever I read the accounts of Jesus life, I am struck by the fact that the settings for many of these stories are the streets and roads of Palestine.  Today, when most of us think of a religious teachers we imagine them ministering in a mosque, a church building, or a synagogue.  We don't picture the dusty by-ways between rural towns or busy city intersections.  Yet, that is exactly where we find Jesus so often.  He's meeting people who are out on the streets of the towns and cities he stayed in. The funny thing is Mayor Menino knows where we should find religious leaders (see "Mayor Calls for Help after Teen Slain" from the Boston Globe).  Menino told the ministers he called to his office: “Get out of the churches and get on the street and help us out. Help us out.’’

As a Boston minister, I want to take Mayor Menino's plea to heart.  I've felt for a long time that we will truly know God is moving when we start experiencing on the streets of our city stories like the ones we read Jesus and his followers experiencing in the gospels and the book of Acts.

This feeling and a love for the people of my city has motivated me since I was a teenager to take the message of who Jesus is to the streets to the people that you won't find in church on Sunday mornings.  That's why for the last month my friend Jeremy and I have been spending our Thursday nights meeting people on the streets of the Fenway where our church gathers.  Over the next three days, I will be sharing stories from our more recent experiences from drunken business associates to bar bouncers will see how the love of Jesus can make a difference...

Tomorrow: A Night on Landsdowne

Resurrection Sunday @ Fenway Church - Is the Church Irrelevant?

Is God dead? Has the church become irrelevant?  Join us Sunday April 4 @ 11AM.  Click here to view facebook invite.



Easter Promo from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

Resurrection Sunday @ Fenway Church - Hope Returns

Luke 24:1-12

In the cool of the morning, several women journey through a garden to give their last gifts to the man they loved more than any other. He had delivered some of them from demons, taught them, ate their food, healed them, and showed them the love and forgiveness of God. Now, he was dead...

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Resurrection Sunday @ Fenway Church - Why Did He Die?

Who is Jesus?  Why did he die?   Discover the answers this Easter at Fenway Church... April 4 @ 11AM www.fenwaychurch.org/easter


Resurrection Sunday from Fenway Church on Vimeo.

Resurrection Sunday @ Fenway Church - The King is Dead

Luke 23:44-56

The King is dead (vs. 37-38).  The innocent man has been crucified (vs. 47).  The crowds leave mourning (vs. 48).  His acquaintances witness these things from afar (vs. 49).  Creation groans waiting for the Son of Man to be revealed.  Darkness reigns (vs. 44-45).  Life breathes its final breath (vs. 46).  He is buried; his lifeless body laid on the hard, cold rock of a newly hewn tomb (vs. 52-53).  Death's cruel finality is all too real.

Yet, a glimmer of doubt remains. Has death truly triumphed?  Jesus' acquaintances particularly the women seem to be waiting, watching to see what will happen (vs. 49, 55).  They have not lost their love for the man who knew "everything they ever did" (John 4:39) yet told them "your faith has saved you, go in peace." (Luke 7:50)  A man named Joseph still looks for the kingdom of God (vs. 51).  On the Sabbath day, they rest.  Waiting in quiet solitude... for Sunday to arrive.

"For there is hope for a tree,

   if it be cut down, that it will sprout again,

   and that its shoots will not cease.

Though its root grow old in the earth,

   and its stump die in the soil,

yet at the scent of water it will bud

   and put out branches like a young plant."

Job 14:7-9

A Journey from Drugs to Jesus

Luke 15 contains a series of stories Jesus told about God's love and the importance of communicating that love to others.  Jesus' heart always longed for those who did not know him to be welcomed back into his family.

I wanted to share a story today that shows how much God is willing to do to reveal his love to people.

On Sunday at Fenway Church, we baptized a young man.  Just a week earlier he made a commitment at our Sunday gathering to follow Jesus, yet it was very apparent to all of us who had met him that God has sovereignly been working in his life for some time.   

He had grown up in a semi-dangerous environment.  Throughout his teen years, he turned to alcohol and drugs.  He left Boston two years ago to try and escape a life that was spiraling downwards but instead became addicted to even harder drugs.  However while away, he met a friend who invited him to church.  It was during a handful of visits to that church that he began to realize Jesus was real. 

The young man returned to Boston and was able to suddenly stop doing drugs.  A few months ago, he began praying and worshiping Jesus alone.  God was moving in his life.  He met two members of our church at a Dunkin Donuts he worked at.  They were there trying to convince another employee that had said he was going to come to church but hadn't come yet to come!  Instead, they met a different young man who was hungry for God. 

As that young man shared his story on Sunday, you could tell how much he loved Jesus.  Jesus had done so much in his life, and he was truly grateful.  His journey is just beginning!

Kingdom Come III: What is the Kingdom? (Part II)

Continuing our series on the kingdom by answering the question - what is the kingdom?  The kingdom is a matter of the heart more than anything else.  Miraculous works and bold declarations are not what God is looking for (Matthew 7:21-22).  They are merely signs of the kingdom.  The fruit of the kingdom, what the kingdom really is, is an internal heart change.  True repentance - change our way of thinking- involves adopting the attitudes of the heart described in in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-8).

Unfortunately, this message was not recorded due to a technical error.  Hopefully, it lives on in the hearts and minds of those who heard it :)

Sunday February 28
David W.

Start of Daily Devotionals for 40 Days

I felt led by God to start writing a daily devotional that people could follow on a daily basis as we commit ourselves as a church to pray more.  The Bible reveals who God is and serves to strengthen our faith and breathe life into our prayers.  I hope these devotionals will encourage you.  I will only be posting the first one here at this blog.  To follow the devotionals daily go to http://bostonawake.blogspot.com and subscribe to the email list on the top right corner.

Devotional Day 1 for Monday 3/1

New Testament Reading: Luke 1
Old Testament Reading: Psalm 118:1-8

One of the major themes of the books of Luke & Acts is prayer.  Over the next 40 days why not read 1 chapter a day of Luke and then into Acts?  Look for how prayer is involved in Jesus' conception, birth, life, death, and instruction to his disciples.  It was in the place of prayer that Jesus aligned himself with the Father's will, was empowered by the Holy Spirit, and was transfigured.  Let's model Jesus' example!

Often times when I go to pray, I found myself tired or distracted by my thoughts.  Psalm 118 encourages us.  It is good to pray these verses back to God as you go to pray.  It begins by reminding us that God's love and mercy endures forever!  How freeing to know as we go to pray that God loves us and no matter what we have done, how far we have strayed, or how tired we feel there is mercy available to us because of Jesus' death on the cross!  Thank Him for that.

It does not end there.  Verse 5 reminds us that if we call out to Lord in the midst of our anguish; he will set us free.  Do you feel bound as you approach God?  Cry out in prayer.  He will answer.  Do you need help to pray?  God is your help (vs. 7).

We may think.  Why I am I fasting?  Why am I walking up early?  The answer is found in verse 8.

"It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man."  (Psalm 118:8)

The Upcoming 40 Days of Prayer & Fasting

The 40 Days
Starting tomorrow morning (March 1), many Christians from across the nation and especially in New England will be embarking on a 40 day Daniel fast to pray for an awakening in the churches and universities of New England.  To learn more about this effort visit http://www.jhopboston.org .

Prayer in Luke & Acts
I have lately again been struck about the role of prayer in the books of Luke and Acts.  In Luke, we see Jesus over and over again spending time in prayer with God aligning himself with the Father's purposes and receiving power from the Holy Spirit.  In Acts, we see the church doing the exact same thing on almost a daily basis; the result was a constantly growing church filled with grace and power serving the culture it lived in.

I believe times like these 40 days can be used by God to awaken us to the importance and power of consistent corporate and personal prayer.  Why not begin to read Luke & Acts as these 40 days begins?

What Fenway Church is Doing
For our church (Fenway Church), these 40 days will mean an expansion of our corporate early morning prayer times from Tuesday & Wednesdays to Mondays through Thursdays.  It will be also mean we will be seeking to gather together as a church to pray on a more regular basis starting this Friday night.  Some of us are committing to do the Daniel Fast (see below).  Others may want to fast media, a particular day of the week, or a particular type of food.  I would encourage our members to fast as they feel prompted to by the Holy Spirit.

A Daniel Fast
The idea of a "Daniel fast" is found in Daniel chapter 1 where Daniel and his friends refuse to eat the king's fine food and instead embrace a diet of vegetables during their time of training in Babylon.  A "Daniel fast" for me consists of not eating any meats or sweats or fine foods (define that however you want :).  I generally eat fruits, vegetables, some breads, beans, rice, & grains.  Some keep a stricter diet than that.  To me it is not the diet that matters (choose what God leads you to do), it is a heart that wants more of God.  Please remember that if you have certain health issues a change in diet or a fast can be medically dangerous and should be avoided.  Also, remember to drink lots of water!


God has always used "Daniel fasts" to increase my hunger to spend time with Jesus, allowed me to spend more time in prayer, and reminded me that this world and its desires are passing away.  I find at the completion of these fasts I am often more focused on God's kingdom and more filled with God's power simply because I have been spending more time with him!


Some Principles on Fasting & Prayer
I have a passion for prayer and fasting that began in my college years.  I have learned up a few key principles that I think are worth sharing for those who might be considering embarking on the fast.


1)  The main purpose of fasting and prayer in the New Testament was to align with God's plan and be filled with his power.  It was NOT to get him to bless their plans or get him to do what they wanted.  Let's get involved where HE is already working - how do we know where he is? We pray and listen!  (Acts 13:2, John 5:19)


2)  God is sovereign.  His plan to redeem of humanity and establish his church among every people group is not in doubt. (1 Cor. 15:24-26) Yet, he calls us to pray for, "Laborers to be sent out into the harvest."  Jesus told his disciples to pray for laborers then immediately sent them out!  (Matthew 9:35 - 10:5)  Will you not only pray for laborers but allow God to make you one?


3)  The one thing Jesus desires most for us is to be with him, listening to his voice. (Luke 10:28-42)  He wants revival more desperately than we do.  A true revival begins when God's people hunger and thirst for Jesus above all else NOT when we desperately plead with God to change the world..  It is in Jesus' presence that we are changed and empowered.  (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)


4) Finally, God has recently me been showing me in the word that he will show his people things in prayer that will open up huge doors to be witnesses for him IF they will act on what they see and hear immediately.  (Acts 9:10-12, Acts 10)  We too often hesitate after praying seeking "God's will" again and we MISS opportunities.  Don't wait go find out if God spoke or not!


Recently at a student & 20s conference we were hosting, around 15 us prayed that God would show us who to talk to and what part of the mall to go to as we headed for a local mall.  One young woman heard God tell her, "Go to the cafeteria and talk to the girl who is sitting alone."  She did.  The cafeteria was relatively crowded but only one girl was sitting alone.  She talked with her for awhile got her contact info and now the girl she talked to and 3 of her non-Christian friends our doing a weekly Bible study with they young woman who listened and obeyed!  Praise God.  He is at work.  Get in on his plan :)


I truly believe if we will be prepared to listen and act during this fast we will not need to wait to see God begin moving in major ways.  Jesus longs to bring in many lost sheep in the city of Boston.  The Father and the Holy Spirit are already at work  Will you find yourself discovering what they are doing?  It starts in the place of prayer.


Now, I gotta get to bed.  6AM prayer starts tomorrow!!!

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he (Jesus) departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. - Mark 1:35