A White Rose

This past Sunday I met a lady who has been coming to New Covenant for a couple of months. She told me there was a white rose on the platform for her a few weeks ago. We put a white rose in a vase which is located on the platform when someone trusts Christ as their personal Savior. This was her way of telling me she recently became a Christian. The reason she came to talk to me was to ask what she should do next. She is coming regularly to the worship services and was ready to take the next step. I was delighted to tell her about Starting Point which meets every Sunday.

Isn’t that great! This is what it is all about – leading people into a personal, growing relationship with Jesus.

The Real Battle

Jesus Our Treasure

The real battle in life is a spiritual one not physical. The Bible puts it this way,

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)

This battle became very real to me yesterday afternoon (Friday, December 1). Last night was the first of four performances of our Christmas musical, Jesus Our Treasure. The good news about Jesus Christ is beautifully portrayed in this inspiring musical. I have the privilege of summarizing the message and giving an invitation to trust Christ.

Satan doesn’t want that to happen. So, I felt a real battle with satanic forces trying to discourage me before the musical. Satan knows when the Gospel is going to be shared and hearts will be open. He’ll do anything he can to distract those who are to boldly share the Good News. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one feeling it yesterday.

I had an hour before the musical would start after dropping Leesa off at church. So, I went to St. Luke’s hospital to visit someone. But that person had been discharged. So I went to the chapel and sat and prayed. While praying God settled my heart, clarified what I was to share and gave me courage.

The musical went great. The choir, orchestra, and drama were wonderful! God used every person on the stage to present His message of love, sacrifice and hope. Please click on the above picture for more scenes.

At the end I gave the invitation with confidence and boldness. God is so good! Praise God for His power over the forces of darkness and for the privilege of sharing the Gospel.