The Franklin County Area Revival Newsletter
December, 2009
In This Issue:
· Prayer, Church of the Nazarene in St. Albans ……...……..pg. 1
· The Christmas Event December 22, 2009 at 7:00pm…..….pg. 2
· The Word and The World - Rev. David M. Virkler to speak at Godfest on April 17th…………………………pg.2
· Dates for Next Year’s Events…………………………...…pg. 2
· Church of the Month – United Church of Milton….....……pg. 3
· Pray and Fast……………………………………………….pg.3
· God Squad .………………………………………………..pg. 3
· Pastor of the Month – Andrew Chrysler, God’s Little
Church of Alburgh: The Importance of Christmas in
our cry for Revival………………………………………. pg. 4
· A Word From Pastor James Parker: The Cost of Revival…pg. 7
Prayer
Pastor Ray Mann, Champlain Valley Church of the Nazarene in St.. Albans:
Please join us in prayer as we enter this very special and blessed time of year. Pastor Ray Mann, Champlain Valley Church of the Nazarene in St.. Albans.
Father, Your Word in Isaiah says “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light, on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” We confess that we live in a land of great darkness and we need Your light. The people of this land have seen a great light, but have preferred the darkness. We confess our great need and we are not worthy of Your love.
You also have said in Your Word that you sent your Son into the world, despite our dark hearts. You sent Him knowing the sacrifice that was to come. He came as a little baby, trading the Throne of Heaven for a stable filled with hay. He traded his title as King of Kings, to become our Shepherd. “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart.”
We do not deserve Your favor, O Lord God. We come to You as little children, and we ask that you listen to our heart’s cry for our cities and our land. We need Your Holy Spirit to come and speak to hearts and minds. We need Your Holy Spirit to direct us and guide us to those He has prepared. We need Your Holy Spirit to come and fill us with sanctifying power for Your work here.
Father, listen to our heart’s song today. We pray that this Advent and Christmas season will be filled with the light of Your love. Father, let every deed we do and every word we speak be dedicated to you. Let every place we go and every person we speak with see the face of Jesus through us, whether our family, our friends, our fellow students or co-workers, the people we encounter at the mall, gas station or grocery store. Every time we see a manger, let us remember the Son of God who came as a little baby for our sake. Every time we see a Christmas tree let us remember the eternal life it represents, the star on top as the Star of Bethlehem, the gifts underneath as the gifts you gave and are giving to us and finally, we give all the glory to God.
We pray this in the name of Jesus our Lord and Saviour! Amen!
The Christmas Event- December 22, 2009
7:00pm First Baptist Church of Saint Albans
Pastor Bill Simmons of First Baptist of St. Albans will be directing the event of the Birth of Jesus. Other pastor’s from the area will be participating in the event as well. Teen Challenge will be singing Christmas songs. Hope to see you there.
Rev. David M. Virkler from The Word and The World to speak at Godfest on April 17th
We are very excited to announce that Reverend David Virkler of the Word and The World Ministry will be speaking at Godfest on April 17th. Reverend Virkler has a nationally known radio show that is heard throughout the country. He has been speaking on a series on Revival. Please check out his website at www.wordandtheworld.org
You can learn about him, his colleague David Breckinridge. You can even listen to his messages on revival. Please pray for him and his ministry. We hope that you will be planning to attend Godfest on April 17, 2010.
“The Word And The World” is the radio outreach of Dedication Evangelism. The ministry was founded with the goal of Challenging Reapers and Harvesting Souls. For over four decades, “The Word and the World” have sought to challenge and encourage God’s people and to reach the lost with the Gospel. This is accomplished through a four-fold outreach of special meetings and presentations, radio broadcasting, print and audio resource materials, and their website www.wordandtheworld.org. These include unique Gospel presentations; “NEWSpoint,” a 1-minute commentary on the news; inspirational and informative articles and commentaries; CD of messages, broadcasts and interviews; and Dave’s book Presidential Profiles, which presents fascinating facts and stories about many of America's presidents to illustrate truths from God’s Word. We encourage you to visit www.wordandtheworld.org for more information on Dedication Evangelism.
Dates Announced for Next Year’s Events
Godfest April 17, 2010 (changed from April 3 due to Easter being April 4)
Run For Jesus May 29, 2010
Franklin County Area Christian Week August 8-15, 2010
Godstock August 13-15, 2010
Church of the Month - United Church of Milton
Each month we will pick a church that we will concentrate on praying for that month. At the same time we want to pray for as many Christians, pastors, and congregations as we can. This month we will be praying for United Church of Milton pastored by Jeff Cornwell. Here are their requests:
For a heart to worship, so that God knows how much we love and treasure Him;
That we would truly cherish and obey God’s Word;
That we would honor each other in Christ’s faith family by putting others before ourselves;
That every member would have a life-changing encounter with Christ;
That each person would grasp God’s command to make disciples by “coaching” someone else;
That our congregation would be completely aligned with God’s will and purpose;
For adequate financial resources to accomplish our mission;
For the transformation of our town—end to need, food-insecurity, and poverty; for adequate, affordable housing, affordable health-care for all residents, and meaningful employment;
For the transformation of town government—for wise and godly public servant-leaders;
For the transformation of our schools—for spirit-filled teachers, administrators and support staff;
That we would not be “untied,” but a catalyst for “uniting” the body of Christ in our community
Pray and Fast
Pray every day and throughout the day for revival in the Franklin County area. Pray for as many people as you can that they will be stronger in their walk, and for all who don’t know Jesus, that they will turn to him and trust in Him. We are also encouraging you to join us in fasting on Wednesdays (skipping breakfast and lunch) while praying for revival for the Franklin County area. Make sure we are turning off our TVs and keeping them off.
God Squad
In another effort to get the name of Jesus seen more in the area, we are trying to get people to wear “Believe on Jesus Christ” t-shirts whenever they go out in public other than at work. We believe this would be a very effective way of witnessing, as it will often start a conversation with others. It will give courage to others, and there will be a greater boldness in the area. Lets change the culture. If you are interested in advertising for Jesus with the t-shirts please email us to let us know. We would then order you different color t-shirts. We are shooting for 20 people to witness with t-shirts, and are very happy to say that we have already had some commit to wearing the t-shirts full time. Please pray for these people that they will have more opportunities to witness because of the t-shirts, and that they will have the courage, and wisdom, and spirit to encourage others to look to Jesus. Pray that they will also encourage others to be bold. Praise the Lord for their boldness. Here they are:
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1. Scott LaFountaine
2. Matt Luneau
3. Ilze Luneau
4. Dustan Metcalf
5. Danial Dennis
6. Wanda Dennis
7. Crystal Dennis
8. Patti Judd
9. Katie Osborne
10. Henry Davis
11. Lynne Airoldi
12. John Brueckner
13. Jaye Lundborg
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And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me (Jesus) before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God.
Luke 12.8
For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith.
Romans 1.16
Pastor of the Month- Andrew Chrysler, God’s Little Church of Alburgh:
The Importance of Christmas in our cry for Revival
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”
So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” Matthew 1:18-23(NKJV)
Certainly, if there had been no birth of a Savior, there could be no salvation. With no salvation, there would be no need for revival. All too often though, we read the Word of God but do not let the full implication enter our mind. As we read about the birth of Jesus, God’s faithfulness shines through. We gain hope when we realize that God’s plan included the failures of people, the turmoil of the times, and the impact of society’s expectations. When we read through the genealogy of Jesus, we find liars, cheats, adulterers, prostitutes and idolaters. We find those who did righteously, and those who did wickedly. The people were scattered and taken into exile for seventy years an whey they returned there were enemies again in their land. Yet, through all the difficulty and turmoil, God was at work. “The Birth of Jesus was as follows…”
When we examine our circumstances in light of the revealed Word of God, we understand that God is sovereign and has everything under control. Revelation 13:8 refers to Jesus as the “Lamb slain before the foundation of the world”. All the way back in Genesis, we find prophecies of Jesus: enmity between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman (3:15), out of Judah comes the lawgiver and Shiloh {peace personified} coming (49:10). Fourteen times in the book of Matthew alone, we read the something happened to fulfill a prophecy of Jesus. The birth of Jesus as fulfillment of prophecy should excite us. Hebrews 6:18 reminds us that it is “impossible for God to lie”. When we see circumstances that seem insurmountable, we should just remember that “with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37).
God has shown that His Word will not fail, He has a plan, and He cannot lie. It remains for us to believe His Word and follow His plan. A wise preacher once told me that “Faith is merely believing that God was telling the truth when He said something”. When we take God at His word and do the things He directs, things happen.
I remember several years ago asking a young man if he believed Jesus was coming soon, he said that he did. I told him that if he believed it, he would do something to get ready. If he believed the roof of the building we were in was going to collapse, he would get out of there. By the same reasoning, if someone believes that Jesus is returning to receive His followers and judge the world, they would live in a way that illustrates that belief.
God has revealed His plan and His will throughout His Word. When we read the God is “not willing that any should perish” (II Peter 3:9), we understand the call to reach souls. When we read “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15) we see how important this is to God. We read in John that Jesus came and died for the sins of the whole world. When we cry out for revival, we touch the heart of God by coming into agreement with His Will.
Mark 16:16-18(NKJV) says “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” If we take God at His Word, we should expect things to be happening every day. “John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us." Mark 9:38(ESV).
The fact that these signs are not happening on a regular basis shows how much we need revival. Even evildoers who are not obedient to the will of God should be able to work wonders if they believe. Matthew 7:21-23(NIV)"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”