MissionAccess

Category: Discipleship

  • Well Done!

    Image Source: goo.gl/50Jbk3
    Image Source: goo.gl/50Jbk3

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of Team MissionAccess!  This month we continue our focus on the concept of Leaving a Legacy with a closer look at the Life & Legacy of Evangelist Billy Graham.

    Perhaps one of the most well-known Evangelists of all time, this early You Tube Vid Clip captures a fiery young preacher leading a classic Crusade 60 Years ago in Madison Square Garden.  But by that time he’d already been saving souls for a decade!

    And during a steamy Summer 1972 Billy Graham Crusade in Cleveland, OH I too heeded The Call to come “Just As I Am” and gave my life to The Lord.

     “According to his staff, more than 3.2 million people have responded to the invitation at Billy Graham Crusades to ‘accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior’. As of 2008, Graham’s estimated lifetime audience, including radio and television broadcasts, topped 2.2 billion. Because of his crusades, Graham has preached the gospel to more people in person than anyone in the history of Christianity.”[1]  

    Suffice to say Billy Graham has been a powerful force for Christianity worldwide.  But according to the World Population Clock, there are roughly 7.5 Billion people in the world today.  So though God has used Billy Graham in a mighty way there are still more than 2.5X that many people who STILL need to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.

    Hard to believe but Billy Graham turns 99 this year! And while he eagerly anticipates hearing a richly-deserved “Well Done!” it is now up to You…to Me…to US to pick up our Crosses, Share Our Faith and help lead a whole new generation into a Personal Relationship with Our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.

    Be Encouraged By:  Billy Graham’s Final Message To America 

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

    [1] “Billy Graham” in Wikipedia:  The Free Encyclopedia (Wikipedia Foundation Inc., page was last modified on 21 March 2017, at 03:48.), [encyclopedia on-line], available on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Graham, retrieved 14 March 2017.

     

  • A Diamond’s Best Friend

    Image Source: goo.gl/R0fKap

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of Team MissionAccess!  Ponder with me this month the concept of Legacy.  How shall we honor not just the Milestones on our Christian journey but more significantly the Process we go through to prayerfully become transformed into the image of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ?

    So let’s talk Diamonds, shall we?

    I’m not talking literal diamonds though they certainly are precious. I believe our Lord is interested in creating diamonds of a far greater value.  In fact I never cease to be amazed by how Our Awesome Lord allows suffering to produce Spiritual Diamonds out of us.

    Our Scripture passage focuses not so much on the Product but on Process:

    Psalms 66:10-22 NASB

    “For You have tried us, O God;

    You have refined us as silver is refined.

    11 You brought us into the net;

    You laid an oppressive burden upon our loins.

    12 You made men ride over our heads;

    We went through fire and through water,

    Yet You brought us out into a place of abundance.”

     Question:  Who is “You”?  And what is He doing?  More importantly who is *NOT* doing it? 

     Ah!  But Look closely:  WHY is He doing it?

    Oh Precious Peeps!  (Insert Heavy Sigh Here)  So much of our focus remains fixed on the “What” we’re going through.  And rightfully so because we are urged to “Pray Without Ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17 NASB) for others as well as ourselves.  But the Power lies not in the What but in the “WHY”:  “YET You brought us into a place of abundance!”  Amen & Hallelujah!

    Speaking of Diamond’s Best Friend…it’s God!  So why not get to know Him better?  Here’s a suggestion:  try simply spending more time with Him focused on the Why with a Daily Devotional.  Joni Eareckson Tada’s powerful classic Study entitled “Diamonds In The Dust” I Highly Recommend!

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

     

  • Fresh Blessings

    Image Source: iStockphoto.com
    Image Source: iStockphoto.com

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of Team MissionAccess! As we boldly step out on faith in 2017 I simply wish to encourage you to anticipate Fresh Blessings as we press forward towards the Goal in the newly-minted Year ahead.

    Let’s revisit the beloved story of the “Fishes-n-Loves” in Matthew 18–but do it through fresh eyes, shall we?   

    OK lemme set this up:  Jesus is now in full Ministry Mode and wows the crowds when He performs miracle after miracle including feeding 5000 Fans without the help of Ubereats (in fact with just two fish and five loaves of barley bread).  By the time we arrive at this passage His Disciples have “been there done that,” and should be anticipating a miracle, right? 

    But look what they say:

    “And the disciples came to the other side of the sea, but they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6 And Jesus said to them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”  7 They began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “He said that because we did not bring any bread.” 8 But Jesus, aware of this, said, “You men of little faith, why do you discuss among yourselves that you have no bread?  9 “Do you not yet understand or remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets full you picked up?  10 “Or the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many large baskets full you picked up?  11 “How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?” Matt 16:5-12 NASU

    Bottom Line is this Peeps:  Fear Not!  If He did it before He can do it again.  Regardless of what you are going through He’s got Fresh Blessings exceeding abundantly.  Plus Doggie Bags O’ Blessings to take home.  Though your challenges of yesteryear may creep unwelcome into the New Year, His Mercies already beat them over the threshold.  

    May Fresh Blessings abound for You and Your Fam in 2017 & beyond!

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

  • Pure Joy!

    Feelin' The Joy in 2017!
    Feelin’ The Joy in 2017!

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of Team Mission Access!  While we breathe a huge sigh of relief that our collective Christmas craziness is winding down and set our hearts on a hopefully Happy New Year ahead, let’s consider something that may have may have gone MIA this season:  JOY.

    So let’s unwrap Joy, shall we?  James 1:2-4 NASU says:

    “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

    The Key Verse in that passage is:  Consider It All Joy.  The NIV says we are to Consider it PURE joy.  Each of those words is a Bible Study in itself!  But’s Go For The JOY.

    Doing just a simple concordance search reveals a Whole Lotta Joy in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament books of Psalms and Isaiah.  But it is only in the New Testament that a more excellent Joy is revealed:

    John 15:11 NASU

    “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

    Wow!  Check it out!  God through His mind-blowing Gift of His Son & Our Savior Jesus Christ gives us full access to His uniquely personal Joy that Lives 24/7 IN All who Believe.

    Now THAT’S a Happy New Year!

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

    Image Source:  Shea Fam Archive

  • Think For A Change

    bbt-images-103016-think-4-a-change

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of Team Mission Access!  With less than two weeks left before we elect our next President I urge you—nay I beseech you–to Think For A Change.

    Recently I read a fascinating book entitled “The Art of Thinking Clearly” by Rolf Dobelli which digs deeper into some of the cognitive cliffs we leap from so willingly to our peril and why.  But there is a way cooler Bestseller that offers a preemptive plethora of wisdom about how best to employ those glorious minds that we’ve been entrusted with to Think.

     I’m sure you’ve heard about it:  we know it as simply The Bible.

     Of the Top 7 Bible Verses About The Mind due to limited time, space and attention spans I choose to focus on this gem from Luke:

     Luke 10:27 “And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’”

     The other verses reinforce quite clearly that our minds are always on His mind, as ours should be on His.  In fact as Christians Our Minds and His Mind should be one and the same.

     So before you head to the polls to vote, check out what each candidate represents.  Read both the Republican Platform as well as the Democratic Platform.

     ***DISCLAIMER!!!***:  I AM NOT ENDORSING A CANDIDATE NOR A PARTY!

     My deepest desire and most hopeful prayer is simply that you Think–& VOTE–For A Change:  for You and Your Family, our Nation and Our Future.

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

    Image Source:  goo.gl/LNwD1L

     

  • Meet Dieula Previlon!

    bbt-images-091816-dieula-119Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of MissionAcess Inc.!  I am honored to shine a well-deserved spotlight on my Good Friend & former DTS classmate Dieula Previlon.  Wife, Mom and Evangelist, Dieula heads ElevateHer–an amazing ministry on a Mission To Empower The People of God to Heal, Find Purpose and Hope Through Jesus Christ.

    Born in Haiti, Dieula immigrated to the US in the late 70s.  After attending Rutgers University she taught Middle School but felt compelled to sojourn to DTS in 2004 to expand her education.   After graduating with her MABC (Masters in Biblical Counseling) in 2007 she served as Missions Pastor & Director at Irving Bible Church.    Later she joined Redeemer Evangelical Covenant Church as Associate Pastor to oversee Local and International Missions.

    In 2008 Dieula boldly pressed forward with her new ministry delightfully named ElevateHer International.  Now Dieula is unleashed to use her God-given talents to truly bless women worldwide:

    • ElevateHer International Ministries’ Vision is to help Women live in spite of past wounds and fear, dream without boundaries, and joyfully embrace all of life for the glory of God.

    Listen to her Bless Us with Her Message at Bartimaeus Baptist Temple!

    What a powerful message to all People & Families Affected by Disability!  But especially to women who either personally or as caregivers often bear a heavier burden of disability.  What Joy to break free in order to become everything Our Awesome God created us to be.  

    Thank You Dieula for your tireless efforts on our behalf! May God Elevate Your Ministry Worldwide!

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

  • Got Peace?

    Gettin' R Armor On! DTS Team Power & Light
    Gettin’ R Armor On! DTS Team Power & Light Fall 2005

    Greetings & Blessings Faithful Followers of MissionAccess.org!  Got Peace?   Suffice to say that the recent unrest resulting from police shootings here in Dallas and now Baton Rouge have everyone suffering a serious Peace Deficit.  But Fear Not!  Let’s have a Peace Talk, shall we?  Where to find Peace, how to access it and how to NEVER lose it.

    Our Scripture focus is found in Phillippians:

    Phil 4:6-7 NASU

    6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

    This verse holds a special place in my heart because it was one of the first verses that my dear Daddy-O taught me.  Let’s focus on that last line:  what was the Peace of God designed to do?  To GUARD Our Hearts & Our Minds.  To keep us Safe.  And Sane.

    Speaking of guarding…

    The Gospel of Peace is a pivotal part of the Armor of God found in Ephesians 6:  15 and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE.  Here’s something I never saw before (though I’ve read this passage countless times before):  you may have every other weapon of war but without the Gospel of Peace you ain’t got nothin’ to stand on!

    So don’t be caught barefoot (spiritually speaking) Saints! 

    Guard Your Hearts & Minds by spending time in The Word.  Enjoy Unlimited Access to His Perfect Peace 24/7.  No safer place in the entire universe than that.  Guaranteed.

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

  • Unselfies Arise!

    Image Source: iStockphoto.com
    Image Source: iStockphoto.com

    Suffice to say that when it comes to Becoming More Like Christ the post-millenial phenom of The Selfie is proof positive that we as Christians are seriously steaming full speed ahead in the wrong direction.

    According to a survey by Luster Premium White:  

    *95% of young adults have taken at least one selfie

    *66% of Millennials primarily post their selfies on social media for their friends to see. 

    *On average, Millennials spend 54 hours a year taking pictures of themselves.

    *Millennials will take 25,000 photos of themselves in their lifetime. 

    *Last year alone more people died in selfie-related incidents than from shark attacks.

    OK so what should we as Christians do about it? 

    1 Cor 10:24 (NASU) says  “Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor.” Wow. What if we took the camera off of ourselves and focused it on someone—ANYONE—else?

    Betcha if Jesus had a Smart Phone nary a selfie would it contain. Just like my dear Uncle Frank (who single-handedly created the bulk of our family’s photographic archive) not a trace of his own likeness could be detected on his own hard drive because he was busy behind the scenes–not seeking the spotlight.

    So Unselfies Arise! Here is your Challenge—if you choose to accept it–& I pray that you will:

    Q:  How Do We Transform From Selfies To Unselfies? As Individuals?  As A Church?

    Looking forward to sharing your suggestions about how best to take the spotlight off of ourselves and place it squarely where it belongs:  on others. 

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

     

     

  • Resolve To Serve

    IMAGE SOURCE: http://goo.gl/HSSCxi
    IMAGE SOURCE: http://goo.gl/HSSCxi

    I’VE GOT IT! The Last New Year’s Resolution you will ever need.  Like it says in Isaiah 43:18—“FORGET the former things!  Do not dwell on the past.”  Yeah verily let old broken resolutions Be forgotten & never brought to mind in 2016 because we are fixin’ to replace and supplant them with this Most Excellent Resolution EVER:

    RESOLVE TO SERVE.

    So Faithful Followers of MissionAccess let’s tackle The Word together, shall we?

    Our passage is found in Matt 6:25-34 NASU The Cure for Anxiety but I’m skipping to verse 31:  “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’  32 “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

    Hmmm—kinda strange choice of verses Linda! The word “goal” isn’t even in there! But the Key Verse 33 says it all.  Because my humble observation is that My New Year’s Resolutions—no matter how good or noble or right—are ultimately doomed to fail.  Why?  Simply because they are MINE—NOT HIS!

    This week I came across a fascinating book entitled:

    SERVE: Others First In A Me-First World by Courtney Rees.

    Rees cuts right to the chase with this quote from Debbie Bube (who heads up Volunteer Recruitment & Placement at Courtney’s church) who shares that “The primary purpose of serving is NOT to fill all of our roles so that church can function, BUT IT IS SO PEOPLE CAN FIND THEIR PURPOSE”! (i)

    So if you are not currently Serving—someone somewhere somehow in a meaningful way: 2016 is Your year to S-T-A-R-T!

    But if you are Serving—REFLECT on whether you are truly helping people discover their God-given purpose. If not perhaps 2016 is your year to Renew, Refocus or Redirect to propel your efforts however small in significant ways For His Glory.

    As you Resolve To Serve in 2016 and beyond, take heart.

    SEEK HIM FIRST & ALL THESE THINGS WILL BE ADDED TO YOU!

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda

    (i)  Courtney Rees, Serve: Others First In a Me-First World (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2013), Kindle edition: Location 81. 

     

     

     

     

  • Regifting Grace

    Hands in the mittens holding red heart
    Image Source:  iStockphoto.com

    So any regifters amongst us? Come on, admit it—for better or for worse you have on at least one occasion recycled a gift. Be not ashamed!  In fact according to Regiftable.com “the mission of the superslick site, from Money Management International, is to make regifting less shameful.”(i) Well there is one gift that everyone is free to regift sans shame—and that is the Gift of Grace.

    Grace is “favor or kindness shown without regard to the worth or merit of the one who receives it and in spite of what that same person deserves. Grace is one of the key attributes of God.” (ii) However an even shorter, sweeter definition is simply this:

    GRACE=UNMERITED FAVOR

    THAT’S IT! That says it all in just two words:  I didn’t earn it and I do NOT deserve it.  Now  that’s Grace.  Amazing Grace. 

    You know, we’ve got this whole Christmas thing so totally wrong.  It’s all really focused on STUFF—Giving STUFF; Getting STUFF; & RE-GIFTING STUFF!!!

    But we never stop to think about what God really wants for Christmas. 

    Don’t get me wrong—God LOVES giving gifts! In fact in James 1:17 NIV it says: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.”

    But if we were to ask: here’s what I think He would say:

    Psalm 133 New Living Translation (NLT)

    A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.

    1 How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony! 2 For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil that was poured over Aaron’s head, that ran down his beard and onto the border of his robe. 3 Harmony is as refreshing as the dew from Mount Hermon that falls on the mountains of Zion.

    Wow. HARMONY.  What a concept.  A Little Peace.  A Little Harmony.  A Little GRACE!  Now THAT would Be AWESOME.  Because the best gift is Harmony!  Last month we talked about The Good Fight—but the BEST Fight is NO Fight.  The BEST Fight Is H-A-R-M-O-N-Y.

    In other words–Hey! It is OK to Regift Grace!  So in the Happy New Year 2016 ahead, let’s Regift The Gift of Grace…Liberally!  Unashamedly.  And Joyously throughout the year. 

    In His Accessible Grace,

     

    Linda 

    (I)  http://www.catalogs.com/info/bestof/top-10-most-regifted-gifts

    (ii)  Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright © 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers