Real Evangelism 2013
For the past 2 and 1/2 days I have heard 13 sermons, sang countless songs to my God. Lifted holy hands to my Holy, Awesome God. I've been in the presence of not only some of the worlds best preachers but in the presence of my God, to enter His courts with praise. I've sat at His feet and have learned, I've healed, I've been corrected, I've been admonished. I've gotten a glimpse of Heaven. The more I am with His people and in His presence the less and less I want to be in this world. But we are here for a reason. The purpose to win souls for Jesus. To proclaim the name of the Savior to everyone whether saved or not. What I have experienced these past 3 days have filled me to overflowing. I've gained a God perspective, an above the sun approach to life. I was telling my friend that it's interesting how when we sit under such solid preaching for a few days and experience mission trips like we have, we see how meaningless everything is under the sun like Solomon said. In events like Real Evangelism you get so close to the presence of God that we are in such a holy state of mind, that you get a sense looking at things, and hearing things that it's not so holy.
I wanted to share what I have learned from each evangelist in a nutshell:
First I should start off by saying, Real Evangelism is a conference put together by Bailey Smith. It is a conference geared mainly for pastors to come and be encouraged and refilled and learn, and take ideas and a revamped attitude to their church. However, many people attend other than pastors. It kicks off Wednesday evenings, and lasts for 2 more days.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT-
DAVID RING
We kicked off Real Evangelism with this awesome man of God. His name is David Ring, he was born dead. Because oxygen lacked from his brain, he suffered damage and developed Cerebral Palsy. His testimony is truly inspiring. He challenged me with a word from Matthew 25 and asked "What am I doing with what God gave me? My circumstances, and things I've endured are a platform for my ministry, it is not a hindrance."
ROC COLLINS
Roc Collins is my homeboy. He's in Kingsport, TN and is a dynamite preacher! He challenged from Matthew 10:7, and 2 Timothy 2:1-8 to be consistent AS WE GO. Where ever we go we are witnessing. We are never off duty. We are the church, so the church is where ever we are. Who are we bringing to church with us? Not to the building, but in our everyday lives. We evangelize to everyone, it doesn't matter if they are already saved or not. God never created anyone at all to go to Hell. Hell was not made at all for image of God bearers but for Satan and his demons. However, there is only one way to Heaven. God desires that ALL would be saved.
THURSDAY-
JUNIOR HILL
This is another awesome man of God. He preached from Psalm 37:23. Some of his points were that we make inclusive predictions based on exclusive premises. The goodness of God is extended to ALL people. There are some promises that are inclusive to all people, there are some that are exclusive to saved people. When the Lord orders our steps they are fashioned by grace, they are furnished by His supply, they are fitted to who we are in Christ. God knows the finish line. We keep pressing on until He determines until we are finished. Not when we are tired and weary. But all in His timing. He told the story that for the last 40+ years he has been giving $100 away to who God puts in his path that needs it. He said, every time I give it away, God gives it back, and then I give it away again, then God gives it back. He has been doing this for 40 years! And even as he stood in the pulpit that day he had $100 in his pocket waiting to give it to the right person.
What a testimony of faith, and trust in God, of Stewardship, of giving, of love.
DR. CRAIG CONNOR
Dr. Connor reminded us of the God of Comfort from Isaiah 40:1-11. Reasons we have tough times is because they are sometimes self inflicted, satanically induced, or Savior induced. He reminded us that some of our greatest revelations happen in the hard times, and it's so true. He gave us some responses that we give when we face difficult situations that aren't so good in that we rebel, we run, and fall back on "reliants" like drugs or alcohol. We can't quit, keep pressing on. He reminded us of our resources. We can get strength from the Word, in our relationship with Christ, and strength in knowledge. The knowledge of His perception, His power, and His protection. It is the WHO OF GOD!
He preached again that night on the issue of God and the Government taking his text from Romans 13. He pointed out what a faulty government looked like, as well as what a flourishing and functioning government looked like. We all have a rightful place in society. Government was appointed by God, and it was blessed by God. But today the government has stepped over what God blessed and made up their own laws and followed their own opinions. What must be remembered in America for sure is that there is a moral standard. There is always justice.
DR. GERALD HARRIS
I met and spoke with Dr. Harris this week. One cool thing about all of these men is their humbleness before God. They are all very down to Earth, and really do love and care about people. I thoroughly enjoyed this sermon he brought from Psalm 1. He went very into depth and detail. The theme he focused on was Spiritual Prosperity. You have the whole health, wealth fad. But I would rather be sick and poor and have spiritual prosperity, than well and rich and have no spiritual prosperity. Dr. Harris teaches that we are to shun the council of skeptics, shun the conduct of sinfulness, shun communion with scorners. We need to be satisfied with the WHOLE WORD, dwelling in the WORD. But beware that it's not all about how many times you have been through the Word, but rather how many times the Word has been through you. When we are planted by the riverbank we are growing by the life source. We are stable, we have vitality, and fertility. Are we birthing new people into the Kingdom? There must be consistency, and faithfulness. Then the end result is prosperous. He gave the example of Adoniram Judson. He was a baptist missionary to Burma, you can read about him here.
DR. BOB PITTMAN
Dr. Pittman taught from Luke 13, and 23. He taught who the most pathetic man was not all the men Jesus met who were demon possessed. It wasn't the lame beggars, it wasn't the crippled and lame, it wasn't even dead Lazerus. Jesus sought out these people, and spoke to me. The most pathetic man Jesus came into contact with was Herod. Jesus never spoke one single word to Herod. What an awful place to find yourself in where Jesus no longer is able to speak to you because your heart is so cold and hard. There are times we feel pathetic in life. We look at people and think they are pathetic. But if we can still hear from God, we are not pathetic, we are blessed!
DR. Ron Lynch
I hear from this powerful man of God about every Sunday night at my home church, First Baptist Church Indian Trail. I love to hear him preach. He has taught me so much from the pulpit, and it's such an honor to sit at his feet and taking in all he has to share through God's Word. I sometimes can't explain his messages because they are so deep that I have to retrace back and listen again, and try to link stuff up. Basically he taught on the evidence of faith as being the essence of life. The Life is Christ, and we lost life at the fall, so we need the presence of life again because we were created to be inhabited by God. We go through 3 tests, and they are ever repeating. 1. Testing of the spirits. 2. Moral test- character, integrity, lifestyle that reflects Christ. 3. Social test- forgiveness. there is a difference in reconciliation and forgiveness.
If there is no fruit there is no root.
FRIDAY-
DR. RICK CORUM
In his sermon, he spoke directly to the men in the room. He spoke from 2 Samuel 23, about David, Bathsheba, and Uriah. He encouraged men to be mighty men. To be faithful, fearless, and finish well. I was encouraged to hear this. As a young woman I've been in contact lately with men who need to become mighty. He then taught from Jonah later on in the day.
DR. STEVE SMITH
Bailey Smith's son, Steve, preached on the Prodigal Son, and brought a new light on the parable in that it was not only a story of redemption but of self righteousness. He challenged us to reconsider how we treat our brother in the church. Do we see ourselves better than?
TOMMY STEELE
This man is a stick of dynamite! He is Roc Collins times 5! He is so passionate, and real with the Word. He is the perfect man to close any event out. He ends it with a bang, and you are left with a spiritual high, and sense of encouragement and having been in the presence of the Lord. The few times I've heard Him preach he uses props. He preached from Romans 8, highlighting mainly our inheritance in Christ. He used candy. I can't remember all of his examples, but he used about all of the candy bars out there. It was a good visual, and serves as a good reminder next time we see our favorite candy bar. He main point was that there is a PAYDAY coming when we see Christ. We cannot loose sight of that day. Everything we endure, it's paying off in Heaven.
I cannot wait until next years conference. What a blessing.
I wanted to share what I have learned from each evangelist in a nutshell:
First I should start off by saying, Real Evangelism is a conference put together by Bailey Smith. It is a conference geared mainly for pastors to come and be encouraged and refilled and learn, and take ideas and a revamped attitude to their church. However, many people attend other than pastors. It kicks off Wednesday evenings, and lasts for 2 more days.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT-
DAVID RING
We kicked off Real Evangelism with this awesome man of God. His name is David Ring, he was born dead. Because oxygen lacked from his brain, he suffered damage and developed Cerebral Palsy. His testimony is truly inspiring. He challenged me with a word from Matthew 25 and asked "What am I doing with what God gave me? My circumstances, and things I've endured are a platform for my ministry, it is not a hindrance."
ROC COLLINS
Roc Collins is my homeboy. He's in Kingsport, TN and is a dynamite preacher! He challenged from Matthew 10:7, and 2 Timothy 2:1-8 to be consistent AS WE GO. Where ever we go we are witnessing. We are never off duty. We are the church, so the church is where ever we are. Who are we bringing to church with us? Not to the building, but in our everyday lives. We evangelize to everyone, it doesn't matter if they are already saved or not. God never created anyone at all to go to Hell. Hell was not made at all for image of God bearers but for Satan and his demons. However, there is only one way to Heaven. God desires that ALL would be saved.
THURSDAY-
JUNIOR HILL
This is another awesome man of God. He preached from Psalm 37:23. Some of his points were that we make inclusive predictions based on exclusive premises. The goodness of God is extended to ALL people. There are some promises that are inclusive to all people, there are some that are exclusive to saved people. When the Lord orders our steps they are fashioned by grace, they are furnished by His supply, they are fitted to who we are in Christ. God knows the finish line. We keep pressing on until He determines until we are finished. Not when we are tired and weary. But all in His timing. He told the story that for the last 40+ years he has been giving $100 away to who God puts in his path that needs it. He said, every time I give it away, God gives it back, and then I give it away again, then God gives it back. He has been doing this for 40 years! And even as he stood in the pulpit that day he had $100 in his pocket waiting to give it to the right person.
What a testimony of faith, and trust in God, of Stewardship, of giving, of love.
DR. CRAIG CONNOR
Dr. Connor reminded us of the God of Comfort from Isaiah 40:1-11. Reasons we have tough times is because they are sometimes self inflicted, satanically induced, or Savior induced. He reminded us that some of our greatest revelations happen in the hard times, and it's so true. He gave us some responses that we give when we face difficult situations that aren't so good in that we rebel, we run, and fall back on "reliants" like drugs or alcohol. We can't quit, keep pressing on. He reminded us of our resources. We can get strength from the Word, in our relationship with Christ, and strength in knowledge. The knowledge of His perception, His power, and His protection. It is the WHO OF GOD!
He preached again that night on the issue of God and the Government taking his text from Romans 13. He pointed out what a faulty government looked like, as well as what a flourishing and functioning government looked like. We all have a rightful place in society. Government was appointed by God, and it was blessed by God. But today the government has stepped over what God blessed and made up their own laws and followed their own opinions. What must be remembered in America for sure is that there is a moral standard. There is always justice.
DR. GERALD HARRIS
I met and spoke with Dr. Harris this week. One cool thing about all of these men is their humbleness before God. They are all very down to Earth, and really do love and care about people. I thoroughly enjoyed this sermon he brought from Psalm 1. He went very into depth and detail. The theme he focused on was Spiritual Prosperity. You have the whole health, wealth fad. But I would rather be sick and poor and have spiritual prosperity, than well and rich and have no spiritual prosperity. Dr. Harris teaches that we are to shun the council of skeptics, shun the conduct of sinfulness, shun communion with scorners. We need to be satisfied with the WHOLE WORD, dwelling in the WORD. But beware that it's not all about how many times you have been through the Word, but rather how many times the Word has been through you. When we are planted by the riverbank we are growing by the life source. We are stable, we have vitality, and fertility. Are we birthing new people into the Kingdom? There must be consistency, and faithfulness. Then the end result is prosperous. He gave the example of Adoniram Judson. He was a baptist missionary to Burma, you can read about him here.
DR. BOB PITTMAN
Dr. Pittman taught from Luke 13, and 23. He taught who the most pathetic man was not all the men Jesus met who were demon possessed. It wasn't the lame beggars, it wasn't the crippled and lame, it wasn't even dead Lazerus. Jesus sought out these people, and spoke to me. The most pathetic man Jesus came into contact with was Herod. Jesus never spoke one single word to Herod. What an awful place to find yourself in where Jesus no longer is able to speak to you because your heart is so cold and hard. There are times we feel pathetic in life. We look at people and think they are pathetic. But if we can still hear from God, we are not pathetic, we are blessed!
DR. Ron Lynch
I hear from this powerful man of God about every Sunday night at my home church, First Baptist Church Indian Trail. I love to hear him preach. He has taught me so much from the pulpit, and it's such an honor to sit at his feet and taking in all he has to share through God's Word. I sometimes can't explain his messages because they are so deep that I have to retrace back and listen again, and try to link stuff up. Basically he taught on the evidence of faith as being the essence of life. The Life is Christ, and we lost life at the fall, so we need the presence of life again because we were created to be inhabited by God. We go through 3 tests, and they are ever repeating. 1. Testing of the spirits. 2. Moral test- character, integrity, lifestyle that reflects Christ. 3. Social test- forgiveness. there is a difference in reconciliation and forgiveness.
If there is no fruit there is no root.
FRIDAY-
DR. RICK CORUM
In his sermon, he spoke directly to the men in the room. He spoke from 2 Samuel 23, about David, Bathsheba, and Uriah. He encouraged men to be mighty men. To be faithful, fearless, and finish well. I was encouraged to hear this. As a young woman I've been in contact lately with men who need to become mighty. He then taught from Jonah later on in the day.
DR. STEVE SMITH
Bailey Smith's son, Steve, preached on the Prodigal Son, and brought a new light on the parable in that it was not only a story of redemption but of self righteousness. He challenged us to reconsider how we treat our brother in the church. Do we see ourselves better than?
TOMMY STEELE
This man is a stick of dynamite! He is Roc Collins times 5! He is so passionate, and real with the Word. He is the perfect man to close any event out. He ends it with a bang, and you are left with a spiritual high, and sense of encouragement and having been in the presence of the Lord. The few times I've heard Him preach he uses props. He preached from Romans 8, highlighting mainly our inheritance in Christ. He used candy. I can't remember all of his examples, but he used about all of the candy bars out there. It was a good visual, and serves as a good reminder next time we see our favorite candy bar. He main point was that there is a PAYDAY coming when we see Christ. We cannot loose sight of that day. Everything we endure, it's paying off in Heaven.
I cannot wait until next years conference. What a blessing.
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