From Your Head Elder
This church is moving forward with God’s leading in spite of us and our weaknesses. The three angels’ message is clear and straight forward. Revelation 14:7 says, “Fear God, and give glory to Him . . . and worship Him . . . .â€
This is our time to get out of our comfort zone and praise God to other people in our sphere of influence.
“Every man (human) who has felt the converting power to whom he can speak of the love of God. He (she) can tell in the church what the Lord is to him, even a personal Saviour; and testimony given in simplicity may do more good than the most eloquent discourse.†Counsels on Health, p. 33
"Let church members, during the week, act their part faithfully, and on the Sabbath relate their experience . . . . When God's people see the great need of working as Christ worked for the conversion of sinners, the testimonies borne by them in the Sabbath service will be filled with power. With joy they will tell of the precious experience they have gained in working for others." Testimonies vol. 7, p. 19
"You cannot dishonor God more than to profess to be His disciple while you keep at a distance from Him, and are not fed and nourished by His Holy Spirit. When you are growing in grace, you will love to attend religious meetings, and you will gladly bear testimony of the love of Christ before the congregation." Messages to Young People, pp. 121, 122
"The meeting today was a very solemn occasion for all present. The testimony meeting was excellent. Everyone whose name was called responded willingly. I know that the Lord Jesus was in the midst of us, and all heaven was pleased as we followed the example of Christ. On these occasions the Lord manifests Himself in a special manner to so soften and subdue the soul, to expel selfishness, to imbue with His Holy Spirit, and to bring love and grace and peace into hearts that are contrite. As the meeting closed, and we turned to our tents in the woods, a soft, sweet, holy influence pervaded our hearts. My soul was filled with sweet peace." Evangelism, p. 278
I know most all of us will not be returning to a tent after most meetings, but I do know the sweet feeling of leaving a meeting at church and knowing that I have been with the Lord. I'm sure many others have had these experiences also. I am reminded of times at camp-meetings that I can not fully describe, in that as I walked through the night to our sleeping place, the peace and contentment was almost overwhelming. Those times convict me of my commitment made on my baptism to dedicate my whole life to Jesus and look for His soon return.
In that vein, at the church service on June 30 I will be facilitating a praise, testimonies, and music time. This is our chance to glorify God publicly and to recognize the great things He has done in our lives. I encourage those who are willing to share to prepare their hearts to come to church ready to give Him the glory. Keep them short and to the point so as not to give the appearance of pride.
We have been given but a short time here. Let us not shrink from shyness nor self-indulgence.
Let me tell you, I (if you haven't already noticed) am not a great speaker. I am okay with that, as long as I don't become comfortable with remaining that way. Isn't that really what part of sanctification is? I have come out of my comfort zone and I know you can do it also.
Keep the Lord Jesus your best friend by giving your will to Him every day, preferably in the morning. We will all be blessed by your testimony. Not everyone will be able to say much, only because of time constraints. Don't be discouraged if you aren't given the time to share, there is always prayer meeting and Sabbath School, and we will do this again sometime.
May God bless and keep you till we meet again.