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A Mother’s Faith

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When my grandmother met my grandfather, he was a lawyer for the United States government, working in Tulsa, Oklahoma. When they met and fell in love, he did what every respectable young man in that day would do: he took her home to meet his mother. But my grandfather had to warn my grandmother about something.

“Millie, I’m taking you home to introduce you to my mom,” he said. “As soon as you walk in the door, she’s gonna tell you, ‘My son Jimmy is gonna be a preacher one day.’”

After my grandmother recovered from the initial shock—after all, lawyers are not often compelled to become preachers—my grandfather began to explain how, as a little boy, he became deathly ill. This was back before the days of modern medicine, so when a child got sick it could be a very hopeless situation. His mother prayed, “God, if You take my little boy, I will understand. But if You would somehow heal little Jimmy, he will grow up and be a great preacher and a great man of God one day.”

And God answered her prayers.

My grandfather began to get better instantly and within a few days was completely healed. Staying true to her promise, his mother soon began to introduce her boy by saying, “This is my son Jimmy. He’s gonna be a preacher one day.”

It didn’t make any difference whom he was being introduced to; my grandfather’s mother would always say the same thing over, and over, and over again. During his elementary and junior high years, my grandfather was afraid to bring anyone home from school because he knew what his mom would announce right as his guest walked in the door! Now in his thirties and bringing home his wife-to-be, it would be no different. The same scenario. Nothing had changed. The greeting was going to be what it had been for the last twenty-five years. My grandmother told me that when they walked through that door, just like clockwork, the first words she heard were:

“Hi, Millie. Nice to meet you. Did you know that Jimmy’s gonna be a preacher one day?”

After they were married, my grandfather and grandmother attended a very small church that probably had no more than thirty people on their best Sunday. The pastor left suddenly, and they were without a preacher. The elders approached my grandfather and asked him if he would be interested in doing some of the preaching. Of course his response was, “I’m in the law business, and I know nothing, absolutely nothing, about preaching.”

But my grandmother had another reaction. She said, “James, let’s pray about this,” and then told the elders, “Give us two weeks to pray, and then we will let you know.”

I can only imagine the reaction of my grandfather at that moment! After what I’m sure seemed like the longest two weeks in his life, my grandfather went to the elders and committed to preach for two weeks. My grandmother said his exact words were: “Two weeks. I will preach two weeks only. That will be it, and don’t ever ask me again.”

He did, in fact, preach those two weeks . . . and the next week . . . and the next week . . . and the next week. By the time it was all said and done, my grandfather was the pastor of that church for almost thirty years! He built the largest Christian church in Oklahoma at that time. Even though he became a great soul winner for his generation, his greatest legacy is found in his three children who became preachers, including my father, who preached for close to seventy years. And here I am, a grandson, a third-generation preacher whose three children are also serving the Lord. All because of the faithful prayers of one woman—a great-grandmother I never met, but whose prayers changed four generations!

A mother’s love is one thing. A mother’s faith—and prayers—are another thing altogether. Thank God for mothers, and Happy Mother’s Day to all the mamas everywhere.

“She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.’” – Proverbs 31: 25-29

Excerpt from “Compelled: The Irresistible Call to Share Your Faith” (available on Amazon and every where books are sold online) by Pastor Dudley Rutherford, senior pastor of Shepherd Church in Porter Ranch, California, which has three campuses in the Greater Los Angeles area.

What Will Heaven Be Like?

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Heaven is not a figment of someone’s imagination or a mystical fairy tale. It is as real as the world you and I live in right now. When you try to imagine this glorious city, what do you think of? Fluffy clouds? Angels strumming harps? Philadelphia Cream Cheese? No, no, no. Forget about what you’ve seen in commercials, movies, and television. Let’s look to God’s Word, the Bible, for the truth about Heaven. Here are three important things we learn:

No Expense Spared

In Revelation 21:18–21, John described the most precious elements known to man as comprising the very foundations of this majestic metropolis:

“The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, as pure as transparent glass.”

[Photo by Alicia Lee on Flickr.]

Here on earth, we would never dream of walking on gold—gold so pure that it’s like transparent glass, no less! But the God of the universe reserved the choicest materials to build a heavenly city for those who love Him. Even the material under our feet will be made from the same stuff that we today scrimp and save for just to buy a small ring or a delicate necklace. This tells me that nothing this world has to offer—not even the very best things here on earth—can ever come close to what God intended for us at creation, which will one day be fully restored in Heaven.

He is Preparing a Place for You

Just before Jesus was betrayed, He comforted His disciples with these words: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?” (John 14:1–2)

What a mind-blowing promise for everyone who believes in Jesus Christ! This very moment Jesus is in the heavenly realm laying foundations, framing walls, tiling floors, hanging pictures, building cabinets, and planting gardens . . . just for us. Here’s the thing I can’t comprehend: Jesus loves us so much that He humbled Himself as a man and died for our sins more than 2,000 years ago. The work He did on the cross was more than enough. And yet—He continues to love, give, and provide for us. He continues to work on our behalf by preparing our heavenly home. How astounding is the love of Christ!

No More Tears

Heaven is our home. This earth, with all its troubles and tragedies, is not our permanent dwelling. Revelation 21:3 tells us that in Heaven, God will be with us. He will make His dwelling among us, just as He walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8–9). Verses four and five of Revelation 21 go on to reveal: “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

These are words we can trust in: that in Heaven there will be no more sorrow, disease, pain, crime, or death because Almighty God will make all things new. Oh, I can’t wait for that day! How about you?

Tell the World!

Heaven is that place we long for. It is where our friends and family who believed in the Lord and have died are right now. It is the blessed hope that drives us to share the Gospel. After all, what is the best way to invest in Heaven? Isn’t our best investment the people with whom we’ve shared the Good News? I don’t know about you, but when I get there, I want it to be filled with people. I want to get there and see billions of people there, from every tribe and from every nation, all together worshiping the Lord in our heavenly home. The only way that will happen is if you and I are compelled to tell the present world about our wonderful Savior and the truth of His Gospel.

**Excerpt from the book, Compelled: The Irresistible Call to Share Your Faith by Pastor Dudley Rutherford, available at Amazon and wherever books are sold.

12 Years After “The Secret” and There’s Still No Substitute for the Gospel

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Since its release in 2006, a self-help book called The Secret has sold more than 19 million copies worldwide and has been translated into over forty-six languages. The premise of the book is that you can create whatever you want by using the power of your mind. It is a self-centered philosophy that is actually nothing more than recycled Hinduism and New Age folly. Many people think if Oprah endorses something, that makes it okay.

According to the book, to attract your perfect weight you just think it in your mind and then you become it! (Oh, if that only were true—I would have six-pack abs and a full head of hair!) The book also suggests that everyone has his or her own personal genie standing by with a “your wish is my command” policy.

I want to share with you what one fan of The Secret wrote—not to poke fun, but to demonstrate how far the world has come in creating substitutions for a relationship with Christ:

The one thing that stuck with me was the Genie. I immediately felt a connection to this concept. I drew a Genie with a handsome face, a look of satisfaction and a perfect body to compliment it.

He is there in my room on the wall and he is like the most perfect thing that ever happened to me! Be it exams, relationship problems, health problems, or just something I am scared of, I just tell it to Genie and believe that he will manage it somehow.

After telling my problem to Genie and asking him to take care [of] it, I just stop thinking about it. Somewhere in my heart I feel that he’ll take care of it, and trust me, he has never failed me once! He is my universe, my personal Genie and he fulfills all my wishes, no limitations.

When I read this testimonial, I can’t help but feel both sadness and frustration that such a simple book could lead so many people astray. Jesus Christ—not an imaginary genie—is real and alive (Ephesians 1:19–20). He is the one who truly cares and asks us to cast all our burdens upon Him (1 Peter 5:7). Hebrews 1:3 puts it this way: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”

In its futile attempt to be the answer for all of mankind’s needs, The Secret fails to address the most basic reality of life: death! If the Law of Attraction really worked, then no one would ever die or suffer from disease, because most people would like to live forever. This fact became painfully clear when a viewer of the Oprah show, after seeing two episodes dedicated to The Secret, wrote to Oprah to “announce that she had decided to halt her breast-cancer treatments and heal herself with her mind.”

The Secret is Out

The truth is, God offers eternity through Jesus Christ alone (John 3:16). His living words are the only words of eternal life (see John 6:68 and Hebrews 4:12).

All other religions began with people asking, “How can we get to God?” That’s a very good question. And in the attempt to find an answer, many different people came up their own moral system. They said in essence, “Let’s do these things to get to God. And if we do enough of these good things, we’ll get to heaven.” (Or, in new age thinking, “find peace within ourselves.”)

In Christianity, God looks down from heaven and wants to redeem mankind. So, He left heaven and came to this earth in the form of a baby to bring salvation to the earth. His name was Jesus. He lived thirty-three years and never committed a sin. Then He died on a cross as atonement for our sins so we could have eternal life. No other man in the history of the world—and certainly not a make-believe genie—has ever done such a thing for humanity.

No Substitute

There is no other substitute for Jesus’ love. Every other attempt falls devastatingly short because it will have zero ability to change our hearts, cure our sin, or impact our eternal destiny. Christ’s love is our true motivation, and it propels us toward greater feats than we ever thought possible. We will share His truth with the world so that as many people as possible can have a relationship with God and spend eternity with Him in heaven.

That’s what being “Compelled to Tell” is all about! It’s a passion that will get us out of bed in the morning better than any alarm clock, deadline, or sales goal. It’ll help us endure pain, sorrow, and hardship in order to tell others about the best thing that has ever happened to us.

Pastor Dudley Rutherford is the author of “Compelled: The Irresistible Call to Share Your Faith” (available on Amazon) and the senior pastor of Shepherd Church in Porter Ranch, California, which has four campuses in the Greater Los Angeles area. You can connect with Dudley at dev.fishhookcms.com/ and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

Boldness to Share Your Faith Begins with Humility

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When you become a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), God wants to give you a brand-new perspective, a promising future, and an everlasting hope. One important byproduct of this awesome transformation is a new wardrobe as well! What I mean is this: You exchange your old, dirty, raggedy clothes—which represents your former and sinful ways—for clean, gleaming, new clothes—which represents your justification and sanctification through Christ.

But instead of trendy styles or expensive fabrics, Colossians 3:12 explains what your new clothes are made of: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

As a new creation in Christ with a new mission in life—to share Jesus and the Gospel with others—you now are to be clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. These qualities are worth far more than an entire closet filled with designer suits or fancy dresses. I want to focus on humility because I believe it is a huge precursor to having the boldness to share your faith with others.

Where does humility come from?

When we as human beings are so prone to pride and egotism, how do we cultivate true humility in our hearts? James 3:13 reveals that “humility comes from wisdom.” You might be thinking, Okay, so how do I get wisdom? We find this answer in the book of James as well:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. (1:5)

It’s surprisingly simple: pray for wisdom and it will be given to you—and out of that wisdom, humility springs forth.

C. S. Lewis wrote in his book Mere Christianity, “True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.” When we think of ourselves less, it takes away the concern for our possessions, our reputation, and our safety when we endeavor to share Jesus Christ with someone. Paul’s declaration in Acts 20:22–25 is a beautiful example of this truth. He wrote,

And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.

After Paul spoke these words to the Ephesian elders, he got down on his knees and prayed with them as they wept. What a heart-wrenching scene! Paul said good-bye to beloved friends and fellow workers in ministry, knowing he would never see them again. The Holy Spirit revealed to him that hardships and prison awaited him. And yet he forged ahead with his God-given task, unconcerned for his own future or safety. He considered his life worth nothing; his singular mission was to share the Good News.

Paul is an astonishing example to us all of humility and total surrender to the Lord’s will in order to bring the Gospel to lost souls. May we as Christians become completely humble as we endeavor to share our faith with those around us.

Pastor Dudley Rutherford is the author of Compelled: The Irresistible Call to Share Your Faith (available on Amazon) and the senior pastor of Shepherd Church in Porter Ranch, California, which has four campuses in the Greater Los Angeles area. You can connect with Dudley at dev.fishhookcms.com/ and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

How Can We Become Bold to Share the Truth?

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When I was nineteen years old, I preached at a little church in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The church only had about forty people, most of whom were elderly. Of those forty members, only one was younger than me. I would love to say we had a youth group, but in reality, it was more like a “youth kid.”

I was just starting college in Missouri, so I had to drive about two hours every weekend to get to the church. At this time I was a very shy, mild-mannered, and meek guy. I was the kind of guy who didn’t want to offend anyone. People who know me now are shocked to learn this, but it’s the truth.

Smoking in the Church

Every time I drove to Fayetteville, I was terrified of the three elders of the church who awaited me. I referred to them as the “smoking elders” because all three of them smoked cigarettes. They burned through them by the pack. And what’s worse, they actually lit them up inside the church building. (Yes, I said inside the church building!)

Their smoking always bothered me. I knew it was an unhealthy habit, and the fact that they were church leaders indulging in plain view of the church wasn’t helping us out at all. Who wants to go to church and smell cigarettes as soon as they step in the door? Many, many times I wanted to talk to them about it, but I couldn’t. They intimidated me.

Preach the Truth

One day the director of a local orphanage called me and asked if he could bring the kids to church. “Of course,” I replied. “Come over and we’ll have lunch for you, too!”

He brought about ten kids, which increased our church attendance that Sunday by 25 percent. After the service was over, we all moved downstairs to enjoy our lunch together, but the director pulled me aside and asked to speak to me. Once we were out of sight and away from everyone else, his demeanor changed. He got right in my face and started poking me in the chest with his index finger.

Dead serious, he said, “Preacher, I’m gonna tell you something. Every single day these kids fight the temptation to drink, swear, and smoke. The last place I ever thought they would see a bad example was in the church! You better start preachin’ what people need to hear and not what they want to hear.”

Then he said, “We will never come back to this church again.”

Though his words were harsh, they were a necessary wake-up call. For the rest of that afternoon, I was racked with conviction. My church had served as a bad example to those kids, and it was all because I didn’t have the guts to say what needed to be said.

[Photo credit: factoids on Flickr]

Boldness Unleashed

That evening, as I arrived for our Sunday-night service, I prayed earnestly for God to grant me boldness to do just what that man had said. To preach what people needed to hear.

During my prayer, I felt the power of the Holy Spirit rise up within me and fill me with courage and purpose. Before I even entered the church door, I knew I would finally be able to speak what God had placed on my heart. When I got up to preach that night, I threw away my prepared notes. I stood up there and let them have it with both barrels.

I don’t remember everything I said during that message, but I do remember saying at one point, “If God had intended for you to smoke, he would have put a chimney on your head! Smoking won’t send you to hell, but it will sure make you smell like you’ve been there!” I stressed the fact that we shouldn’t be smoking in the first place, let alone inside the church of Jesus Christ, because doing so would undoubtedly set a poor example for others in the faith.

Truth be told, I was surprised at myself. I never knew I could speak like that. And many in the church were just as surprised as I was. The point being, God unleashed a boldness in me that was completely contrary to my nature.

Fired in Fayetteville

The very next Sunday morning I made my drive from college to Fayetteville. I was preparing to deliver the message when one of the three elders pulled me to the side.

Calmly he said, “Dudley, we’ve decided to let you go.”

“Why?” I asked.

He said, “For financial reasons.”

“Financial reasons? You only pay me $50 a week!”

“I know, but we just can’t afford to keep you.”

I tried reasoning with him, saying, “I’ll tell you what; I just want to preach. What if you paid me $5 a week? That would at least cover the gas. Would that be in the budget?”

He firmly answered, “No, we’re letting you go. Today will be your last day.”

I immediately felt that same boldness rise up in me again, except this time it was twice as strong! For the second service in a row, I threw my sermon notes away and let them have it again. They definitely didn’t want me to come back after that message.

I will never forget what the orphanage director said to me on that Sunday afternoon in Fayetteville: “You better start preachin’ what people need to hear and not what they want to hear.” If I had a photo of him digging his finger into my chest, I would have it framed and sitting on my office desk to this day. It changed my life.

Fire in Your Bones

Today you may be just like I was at age nineteen—timid and frightened to say what you know in your heart is true. God can empower and embolden you to proclaim truths you never thought were possible. He will change the lives of others before your very eyes.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7 nkjv)

Sharing the hope of the Gospel with as many people as I possibly can is my life’s burden and passion. Do you feel this compelling call as well? Pray and ask God to fill you with boldness and courage to speak up. Pray and ask Him to dissolve concerns about what others might think of you or say or do if you tell them the truth.

You don’t have to be a full-time preacher or pastor to get involved in God’s mission to save the world through His Son Jesus. If you ask Him, God will instill in you a burden for sharing your faith. Just as the prophet Jeremiah proclaimed in Jeremiah 20:9, the Word of God will become like a fire in your heart and in your bones that you won’t be able to hold in even if you tried.

 

Taken from the book, Compelled: The Irresistible Call to Share Your Faith, © 2018 by Dudley Rutherford. Used with permission by Worthy Books, an imprint of Worthy Publishing Group, a division of Worthy Media Inc., All Rights Reserved.

Calming Your Storm

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Recently we had the biggest storm in five years in Southern California. Almost 10 inches of relentless rain fell in one day, along with high winds and flooding in several areas. It’s hard to imagine a storm like this would have been possible in our sunny city, but once you’re in the midst of it, it can seem like there is no end in sight. You may wonder if the storm will ever end.

Perhaps storms in life are all too real for you. Financial hardships can drench our thoughts with worries. Relationship troubles can flood our hearts with sorrow and pain. Health problems can turn our lives upside down. But no matter what you may be facing today, Jesus Christ has the power to calm your storms.

We find a literal example of this in the Bible in Mark 4:35-41:

Jesus and His disciples were traveling on a small boat when they were suddenly hit by a furious squall. As waves pummeled the boat and threatened to overtake it, Jesus was sleeping soundly on a cushion in the boat’s stern. His disciples woke Him and exclaimed, “Teacher! Don’t you care if we drown?”

In the midst of a personal storm, we can either panic or we can pray.

During the direst circumstances, the best thing to do is to reach for a power outside of ourselves as we recognize our own limitations for answers or control. We witness this in our own lives when we face struggles with loved ones or money or health problems that bring us to the brink of death. We have witnessed this unfold as a community after the Northridge earthquake in 1994. We even witnessed this as a nation, when millions turned to God after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Whenever we are facing difficult times, God wants His children to call to Him and ask Him for help. As Joel 2:32 says, “And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Going back to the story in Mark 4:35-41, imagine what a peculiar sight it was for the twelve disciples to see Jesus peacefully asleep in the middle of such a violent tempest. How can you and I find such peace in the midst of our own turmoil? Jesus fully trusted in His Father and knew that God was in control of all things. When you have lost all control, who better to trust than the One who has total control?

The next scene is pretty powerful.

Awakened by His disciples’ cries, Jesus got up and said to the storm, “Quiet! Be still!” as simply as one would shoo a fly or hush a barking dog. And the squall became completely calm. The men who witnessed this amazing feat marveled and said, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!” Jesus can conquer any storm you are going through today. He can save, redeem, deliver, guard, protect, and free you. All you have to do is call out to Him, just as the terrified disciples did on that tiny boat. If your storm is more than you can bear, turn to Jesus and He will see you through it!

There is a common misconception that once you decide to become a Christian your life will be free of tribulation. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, Jesus repeatedly warned those who followed Him that they would experience troubles and suffering because they believed in and followed Him. The reality is, everyone, believers and unbelievers alike, will encounter the storms of life—no exceptions, no exemptions. Furthermore, whatever storms you may be weathering today, there are others who are facing the very same thing. These storms vary in size and shape, but the Lord calms both the storms and our fearful hearts.

Once the sea was peaceful again in Mark 4:39, Jesus asked His disciples,

“Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

Fear chases away faith, and faith chases away fear. Too often, we lack faith. We have a difficult time believing that God can handle our children, our finances, our health, our schedules, and our other problems. Yet if we learn to entrust the cares and worries of our lives to Jesus in faith, there is no room to fear.

Jesus challenges us to recognize that God gave Him power not only over the winds and waves, but over all seemingly hopeless situations. He wants us to fully put our trust in Him.  Jesus continued to astound the disciples by His power as they walked with Him further and grew in their faith. Likewise, by walking with Jesus daily, we too can experience His power in our lives to deepen our faith and calm all our storms.