Take Action

We have so much to be thankful for! Don't we? I know I do. This holiday season I have challenged my family and friends to approach the holidays with more than talk. I have provoked them to take action. Throughout God's Word we are told to take action. Our actions can bring blessing, they demonstrate our faith, and let the world know we are what we claim to be. This Thanksgiving and holiday season it would be easy to just sit back and talk about how good God has been, but what would that prove? My challenge is that we take action. Let's be a light this season. Let's show our Thanksgiving and Christmas spirit by making a difference. I'm not asking for anyone to take on new activities that keep you away from family, just be on the lookout for an opportunity to do good. Help someone at the store load their groceries. Give that stressed out Wal-Mart employee a tip or a God bless you. Give up your spot in line to a wearied shopper. Go to a neighbor or friend that you know will spend the holidays alone and invite them to eat Thanksgiving Dinner with your family.

If you do the research you will quickly find that more people take their own lives during the holidays than any other period of the year. Why? Because they are alone and don't know the Savior, Jesus Christ. How many lives can you impact this year? Why not find out. Be thankful by giving the grace and love God has given to you.Let others see the love of God by the example you live this season.

Matthew 25:34-40
34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Building Community

The first New Testament church we read about in the book of Acts was a community of believers with a unity of goals. These people came together daily in homes and the Temple to fellowship and praise God. This early church had a great understanding of community. They ate together, prayed together, they helped others when they were down and out. They had understanding of weeping with the sad and rejoicing with the glad. Perhaps, we are just too busy today to ever come back to that place in life but one this is sure, we need one another. Churches are meeting less and less. Sunday nights and in many cases Sunday School is a thing of the past. Many people get 2 hours of church time per week and go back to our daily lives. We spend much more time with fellow sports parents or coworkers than with brothers and sisters in Christ. I said all of that to remind you we need to build community.

Over the next few weeks I will be discussing this subject. We here at the Sermon Network are working to help our Network users build community. We have established a FaceBook group, a place for our members to come together and share ideas, troubles, or needs with fellow Christians. Right now we have just a handful of members in this group and only 1 discussion topic going but we want that to change. We want to help facilitate relationships and build community among like minded people. We are all out for the same cause, to evangelize the world for Jesus Christ. We have more than 9,000 ministries now sharing on the Sermon Network! What a support group that can be. We obviously don't intend for this group to become a place for counseling but for sharing of solutions and ideas. Maybe you need help in building your media ministry, there are others in our community who have already found the answer and they need a place to share. Right now we are soliciting ideas for better using the Sermon Player but we don't wish to limit the scope of this community.

I want to invite you to join our FaceBook group and begin to help us build our community. If you don't have a FaceBook account maybe it's time to start one. In the coming days I will be posting about the need for the church to use Social Networking sites to strengthen and build community.

Acts 2:42
42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper[i]), and to prayer.

Acts 2:46-47
46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity[j]—47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

Blessings,
Larry

Change is in the Air

Change seems to be the word of the day. We have just finished a very long presidential election centered around the word "change". Outside the leaves and grass are changing colors. My wife and I have a senior in high school our lives are changing. We are preparing our daughter for the change from dependent to independent. One thing I've learned is that old saying "the more things change the more they stay the same" still rings true. You see the trees and flowers will bloom again next year. Our government will continue to ...uhh I guess do whatever government does. When it comes right down to it, just how much does this "change" change our lives?

One thing seems very clear, ministry is changing. People are being reached around the world by ministries they have never heard of from cities they have never visited. Churches are broadcasting their services live to multiple locations and right into our living rooms. While technology is changing and forcing ministries to keep up, there is one thing that will never change. People still need to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. So while the methods change the message remains the same. People still need to know there is a church or a Christian neighbor down the street who is willing to pray. The world needs to know someone cares for them.

We are rapidly the holiday season. (Where did the year go?) While these times may be celebratory for the believer what about those who are alone and don't have a relationship with Jesus Christ? The one change that everyone needs is the change that is made when we accept Christ as our personal Savior. This is the only change that is eternal. While the government will continue to frustrate us, the seasons will come and go, and yes our children will grow up and become less dependent upon us, the change we experience when we surrender our lives to Jesus Christ will last forever. By the way, I've been told that the kids never really leave.

So, don't get too caught up in these changing times. Remember to continue to do what you know to do. Continue to show the love of God to those around you and maybe just maybe we, by our actions, can affect some real change on some who don't yet know Him.

Isaiah 40:7-8
7 The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our
God stands forever."
NIV

Blessings,
Larry

Reaching Higher

I'm pleased to report that we are beginning to see our vision realized with the Sermon Network. As you know our objective is to help your ministry spread God's Word online. We want to see the Sermon Network become an integral part of each ministry we serve. As more ministries begin to see the Network as an online extension of their physical brick and mortar ministry, God's Kingdom benefits. This has been an incredible undertaking but things are beginning to move in the right direction. In September we opened up sponsorship opportunities to our ministry partners. This month I was pleased to contact those sponsors with the good news. In short, the popularity of the Sermon Network is growing and should continue to do so. I have enclosed some encouraging numbers below. These are the numbers I was able to report to those currently sponsoring the Sermon Network.

• More than 1 million impressions (sponsorship views) served per month
• 1500 plus sponsorship click-throughs and growing monthly
• More than 12,000 players posted on web pages, social networking sites and blogs
• Nearly 17,000 Network visits monthly from 104 different countries

The data here is just the beginning, we have yet to initiate our marketing campaign for the Network. The Bible says in

Zechariah 4:10 "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin..."

As our ministry partners continue to grow in number, more and more viewers will be exposed to the content on the Sermon Network. We are seeing search results improve which tells me that people are hungry and searching the web for truth. We are pleased to be able to say when these individuals find the Sermon Network they can find the truth from searching your sermon archives.

Allow me to invite you to take advantage of the increasing popularity of the Sermon Network. You can become a sponsor and gain the added exposure for as little as $5 per month. We don't charge for impressions only clicks to your channel. If you would like to participate simply go to our sponsorship page or for more information you can email advertise@sermon.net

Blessings,
Larry