Paths v5n3 2016 Summer

News & Views from Walk Thru the Bible

Summer 2016

Growing Disciples in Nigeria A Season of Special Events Weekly Devotionals for Summer

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Walk Thru the Bible 5550 Triangle Parkway, Suite 250 Peachtree Corners, GA 30092 www.walkthru.org Volume 5, Number 3 Summer 2016 Published quarterly

Editor Chris Tiegreen Designer Michael Koiner Contributors Chris Tiegreen Emily Tuttle

new resources when they are launched in

our global regions, and that’s a good thing.

It means our global partners are not depen-

dent on the Atlanta headquarters and are taking

ownership of how resources are used in their

countries and cultures. Sometimes I only know

President Phil Tuttle Vice President of Advancement Michael Gunnin

don’t always get to see the response to our

how well a resource is received by waiting on

the reports to come in.

That has been one of the most encourag-

ing trends in the last few years of ministry; the presence of a speaker from the U.S. can help attendance, and I travel often for that purpose, but it isn’t necessary. Our partners are more than capable of taking the lead in launching events and resources. But I recentl y got to

see the immediate response of pastors and leaders in West Africa

when I team-taught Crucible and Detour with local leaders in Nigeria, Ghana , and Togo, and their enthusiasm was so encouraging. It was such a thrill for me to watch how these events unfolded—and to hear testimonies from many

of the churches who had been going through God’s Grand Story in

months. Their one complaint is that they want the courses to last

longer.

That’s not a bad problem to have. It’s clear that our resources are

meeting a

need and changing lives.

Walk Thru the Bible ignites passion for God’s Word through innovative live events, inspirational biblical resources, and lasting global impact.

recent

You’ll see plenty of examples of lives being changed in the followi

pages, not only in Africa but on many other continents, including

our own.

You’ll also find weekly devotionals that can cultivate change in your own life too. I’m very grateful for how God works in us, for us, and throug h us to nurture disciples around the world. Our team of innovative leaders con-

tinues to build on the ministry’s foundations in a way that fits their

and I know you’ll be inspired by the ways God is multiplying their

© 2016 by Walk Thru the Bible® Ministries, Inc. Contents may not be reproduced in any form unless authorized in writing by the publisher. Printed in the U.S.A. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Copyright © 2011 by Biblica.

Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ng

ness. May God encourage you and bless you as you partner with

ministry.

cultures,

fruitful-

us in this

Phil Tuttle President

If you are not currently receiving Pathways and would like to, email pathways@walkthru.org or use the attached envelope to let us know.

SUMMER 2016

VOL. 5

NO. 3

FEATURES

6 Deeper Every Day

Growing Disciples in Nigeria Nigeria’s Christians are growing in number.

Christian leaders are longing to see growth in character too, and Walk Thru the Bible is helping them take their churches deeper.

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Summer Slowdown?

Not When Doors of Opportunity Open Summer has always been a productive time for our publications and international work. Now it’s a time of increasing opportunities for President Phil Tuttle to present Walk Thru the Bible to the world.

Devotionals 22 T F S he

ruit of the

pirit

Weekly readings excerpted from indeed magazine

DEPARTMENTS

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New at Walk Thru the Bible

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Regional News

All our recent developments

Highlights from around the world

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Country Profile

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Step Into the Story

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Leader Profile

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Donor Profile

Nigeria

How You Can Help Us Reach Southern Africa The Word’s Transforming Power Samuel Eklou, national director for Togo Investing the Word Jay and Kristi Dean

Trainings in the West African cities of Lagos, Accra, and Lomé have helped pastors reach equip their congregations.

What’s New @ Walk Thru End of an Era >

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or more than two decades, Walk Thru the Bible donors inevitably connected with either Linda Rogers or Forrest Black, if not both, in their support of Walk Thru the Bible. Forrest and Linda were more than fundraisers; they informed, encouraged, prayed with, and even informally pastored many members of the Walk Thru the Bible family in their roles as development directors. In the last year and half, both have retired after a combined 48 years of service.

Forrest started his position as development director in 1993 and retired late in 2014. Linda began working with the ministry in 1989 as a temp in the publishing department, then became an administrative assistant in development until 1996, and was development director from then until retiring in late 2015. “I consider my 27 years at Walk Thru the Bible to be one of my most important roles and accomplishments,” Linda said. “It has been an honor and a privilege to be a small part of creating a passion for God’s Word all over the world through the generosity and faithfulness of our donor family.”

“Forrest and Linda faithfully cared for and informed our financial partners and friends for many, many years,” said Michael Gunnin, vice president for Phil Receives advancement. “They have both been vital members Honorary of our team and significantly shaped Walk Thru the Doctorate > Bible’s 40-year history.” resident Phil Tuttle was awarded an honorary New Development Directors doctorate (D.Div.) Hired > from Carver College at its commencement alk Thru the Bible welcomes two new ceremonies in May. The honor was given for “your development directors to replace Linda Rogers outstanding model of excellence in Christian education, and Forrest Black, who have recently retired (see leadership, and effective teaching of the Bible and your above). Lisa Geeting and Margaux Jordan will serve development of emerging effective Bible teachers across the donor family in connecting supporters’ interests the U.S. and abroad are worthy of recognition.” In with the funding needs of the ministry. Lisa will serve addition to receiving the doctorate, Phil delivered the supporters in the eastern U.S., and Margaux will serve commencement address. those in the west.

Carver College is a historically black college in Lisa has been a friend of the ministry for many Atlanta, established in 1943 “to meet the need for an years and was a member of the board of directors institution of higher learning for those desiring biblical until she accepted the development position. She lives and theological training,” according to its published in Clemmons, North Carolina. Margaux has more history. It has graduated thousands of students who are than 15 years of fundraising experience with other now serving in ministry and other professions around organizations and lives in Orange, California. the world.

“I am confident that donors will appreciate “Carver College is uniquely positioned to the heart and passion of both of these women,” said send leaders out into the church, and I so appreciate Michael Gunnin, vice president for advancement. this honor and the opportunity to speak at their “Both bring valuable experience and a love for Walk commencement,” Phil said. “This is really an honor for Thru the Bible to their new roles.”

Walk Thru the Bible and a celebration of our ministry.”

P

W

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Regional News Europe >

The Walk Thru the Bible family grieves the death of Eugenia Lup, wife of Beni Lup, regional director for Eastern Europe. Eugenia died from a sudden illness at her home near Timisoara, Romania, on February 25. She served Walk Thru the Bible with Beni since 2000 and invested much of her time in ministry working with victims of human trafficking to help them receive counseling, rehabilitation, reintegration, and legal advocacy. She was 42. Please pray for Beni and their daughter Kriss.

Walk Through the Bible–UK reached a milestone in May of reaching 600,000 schoolchildren in the last 20 years in the United Kingdom— approximately 30,000 students per year. Ministry instructors teach adapted versions of the Walk Thru the Old Testament and New Testament live events in public schools as part of the country’s religious education requirement. Many students have had little or no previous exposure to the Bible, and the classroom events not only give them an overview of the biblical story but also a positive impression of the Bible and Christianity.

CIS/Ukraine > Yuri Shelestun, regional director for CIS/Ukraine, along with his wife,

Natalia, and Boris Gnatyshyn conducted a Walk Thru the Old Testament live event as the opening for a God’s Grand Story training in southern Ukraine in April. Attendees came from the region of Odessa and the Crimean peninsula and included student ministry leaders, pastors, and youth leaders who work with abandoned children and orphans.

Yuri and his team also conducted a Walk Thru the Old Testament for a God’s Grand Story launch in Perm, Russia, in February, and introduced Walk Thru the Bible resources and the God’s Grand Story campaign to representatives in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and the north Caucasus region at a conference in early March.

Nineteen pastors, leaders, and missionaries from a remote area of Honduras gathered in the town of Gualcinse for training in the God’s Grand Story Scripture-immersion campaign. Many participants had to walk several hours to get to the event, and some said it was the first time a Christian ministry has come to them—that few even know where their churches are located.

The attendees learned about smallgroup ministry for the first time and became equipped to lead their congregations through Scripture for six weeks, with small groups, Sunday school classes, and the pastors’ sermons all converging on the same themes and sections of the Bible each week. The campaign helps Christians understand the overall story of Scripture and establish a lifelong habit of engaging with God’s Word.

Middle East >

Latin America > Walk Thru the Bible–South America signed a strategic alliance with the Argentine Bible Society in February. The agreement allows the Bible Society to represent, print, promote, and distribute Walk Thru the Bible resources in their churches and leadership network in Argentina. This greatly expands the ministry’s reach into 10,000 churches per year and into every Christian denomination— a vital advantage in a country where denominations are often divided.

The Argentine Bible Society has worked in Argentina for almost 190 years.

Eighty-five pastors and church leaders attended a training event for God’s Grand Story in Sarghodha, Pakistan, in April—the first time this type of training has been held in the city.

Those who were trained expect to reach 95 churches and 8,300 people with the campaign, which immerses congregations in the biblical story and helps members engage with Scripture. .

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Deeper Every Day

Growing Disciples in Nigeria

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B

y all accounts, Christianity is booming in Africa. Wikipedia says there were only 9 million Christians in Africa in 1900; now there are 380 million. The growth has been largely confined to sub-Saharan Africa, of course—the countries that are not Muslim-majority, though many of those have experienced growing Christian populations too. But for several decades evangelistic efforts south of the Sahara have been hugely successful.

That trend is also true for Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. Churches are growing numerically; Christians are roughly 50 percent of the population today, compared to just 21 percent in the mid-20th century. Nigerian church leaders have a right to be pleased with their efforts and the fruit God has provided.

Those leaders also have a right to be concerned, however, and many of them are.

One of the common complaints about African Christianity—or rapid Christian growth anywhere,

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for that matter—is that it can be a mile wide and an inch deep. That means, of course, that many people have been converted, but far fewer have been discipled very thoroughly. Discipleship is a pressing need in Nigeria and many places in Africa.

That fits Walk Thru the Bible’s mission perfectly. Many ministries are great at evangelism and win many converts, but may not be as good at discipling converts after they have come to Christ. They specialize in the very beginning of the discipleship process but don’t necessarily have the structures or the resources for the long process of growth. Ideally, local churches integrate new Christians into their fellowships and help them grow. But when the number of new Christians far outpaces the number of mature Christians to lead them, the local church can only do so much. That’s the situation many of Nigeria’s churches have found themselves in.

Walk Thru the Bible’s mission is focused on

making disciples, the core of the Great Commission as it is worded in Matthew 28:18-20. That goes well beyond conversion to include ongoing biblical teaching and training. Local churches are best positioned and biblically called to take on that responsibility, and Walk Thru the Bible exists to assist them.

A series of training conferences in West Africa in early April was organized for that purpose. President Phil Tuttle and national directors taught Crucible and Detour, two courses from the Biblical Character Series, in Nigeria, Ghana, and Togo. In each location, pastors and church leaders gathered for training in one of the courses and left equipped to teach the sessions in their own churches as well as others. In Nigeria, that translated into 150 pastors/leaders who would then reach 15,000 people with the teaching—for starters.

As they multiply their teaching and training opportunities and train others too, these discipleship courses will reach even larger numbers. That aims

at the heart of one of the country’s deepest needs.

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sk an American about Nigeria, and you’ll most likely get one of three responses: (1) it’s a nearly endless source of email scams—sob stories, emergency loans, and large prizes and inheritances that await your response; (2) it’s where Boko Haram is terrorizing Christians; or (3) it’s one of those dreaded Ebola countries. The first two responses are exaggerated but not unfounded; regarding the third, Nigeria was the first West African country to control Ebola and became a model for successful response.

These stereotypes are often mixed in with general impressions of poverty and corruption.

What most Americans don’t know about Nigeria is the strength of its people, the potential of its expanding economy, and the wealth of its natural resources. Yes, there are troubles in the north; Muslim oppression of Christians can be severe

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and unchecked by the national government. And poverty and corruption have long been significant issues. But there are also modern skylines, strong universities, and many other positives that defy Western stereotypes.

There are also its growing churches—and, along with them, the question of whether they are growing in maturity as well as in numbers.

Many are, says Francis Olubambe, Walk Thru the Bible’s national director. His team and network of pastors include overseers of multiple congregations and denominational organizations that are effectively discipling members. He has built an extended network of more than 6,000 Christian leaders and helps equip and influence up to 15,000 leaders per year not only in Nigeria but also in 14 other west and central African countries.

But, says Francis, the majority of Nigerian churches are not focused on discipleship and maturity. “Honestly, we have a lot of shallow Christianity.

People come to the church, they dance, they worship, they do everything. But the image of Christ is not in them. The Word of God is not dwelling in them richly. Walk Thru the Bible helps provide materials to churches that help their people live differently.”

Felix Fahuwa, training director for Nigeria, suggests that the majority of churches are focused on status and power rather than on character and maturity. They seek the power of the gospel to make their circumstances better but rarely seek the power of the gospel to make themselves and their relationships better. The result is a Christian culture that thrives on being a spectacle rather than on being a witness.

One of the ways this culture affects pastors and other church leaders is in its emphasis on status. Pastors want people to see their clothes and their cars, Felix says. They want to build

impressive ministries for the sake of their own reputation.

The fact that church members like having a pastor who seems to have celebrity status feeds into this culture. But the emphasis on power affects Christians in another way too: they take all their insults and offenses to God—and to their pastors— to pray for vengeance and retribution on those who have offended them. Felix likens this practice to non-Christians in Africa taking their problems to a witch or wizard. They draw their pastors into their sense of anger and competition.

That’s one of the reasons Walk Thru the Bible courses are so vital, Felix says. There is not enough teaching on humility, patience, compassion, and integrity. The church in Nigeria needs teachings like those in the Biblical Character Series. “There are no teachings on Christian character in Nigeria better than Walk Thru the Bible courses,” Felix says.

In contrast to the character studies, God’s Grand Story takes a broader look at Scripture and guides every ministry of a congregation through the big-picture storyline in six weeks. As of April, more than 750 Nigerian churches and 125,000 people had been through the Old Testament section of the campaign, with more currently going through it or planning to do so in the coming months. Some denominations are even planning to use the study for their national conventions.

The response to the campaign has been overwhelmingly positive, according to Malachi Jinadu, national coordinator for God’s Grand Story.

“It has been very powerful,” he says. One pastor has found that his counseling load has decreased significantly as people are finding the answers to their problems in Scripture themselves. Some are discovering the connections between the Old and New Testaments, realizing for the first time how thoroughly the Hebrew Scriptures point to

“THERE ARE NO TEACHINGS ON CHRISTIAN CHARACTER IN NIGERIA BETTER THAN WALK THRU THE BIBLE COURSES.”

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Jesus. They are learning what the Bible says about corruption and bribery, and they are turning away from a focus on spiritual darkness and finding that God is more interested in their lives than the devil is. Their faith is increasing.

All of that has happened as congregations are going through the six-week campaign. But has it led to ongoing engagement with God’s Word?

“Yes,” says Malachi.

In fact, “the people have become animated about reading the Bible. Their lives are being changed.” In other words, they are growing as disciples.

Christians will come out of Nigeria and spread throughout the continent. “We see a little bit of it happening now,” he says. “You go to different countries and see churches all over. But how strong, how viable, how spiritually dynamic are they? Walk Thru the Bible is working with ministries that can help us reposition the church for that kind of vitality.”

They pray for finances so churches can have discipleship resources and Christian leaders can have the time to serve in ministry rather than spending all their time trying to run a business to make ends meet. And they pray for their country’s infrastructure and services so churches and ministries have the environment they need to thrive.

Most of all, they long for the church to be

“THE PEOPLE HAVE BECOME ANIMATED ABOUT READING THE BIBLE.”

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rancis and Felix have big dreams—and big prayers—for Nigeria. Francis believes the predictions of many that “a mighty army” of

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the church—that Christians would “live the life we profess,” says Felix. “That we would have lives of victory over sin, over worldliness, over materialism, and that we would be what Jesus really desires the church to be.”

In order for that to happen, Christians will need to be unified in their efforts—another area that Walk Thru the Bible’s approach to ministry can facilitate. Its ministry culture challenges the competitive church culture so often visible in the country. At the recent Crucible training for pastors and leaders, 10 denominations and 50 churches were represented among attendees. Walk Thru the Bible trainings bring churches together.

“This is unusual in Nigeria, but very

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needed,” Felix says. “It shows that we are not competitive. We are all in this together, working toward the same goal.”

Through prayer, cooperation, and a consistent focus on discipleship, the goals of Nigeria’s Christian leaders are achievable. And Christians are not only growing in number.

Through solidly biblical teaching and training resources, they are growing deeper every day. .

Caption?

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Country Profile

Nigeria Population: 181 million

; Ijaw 29%; Yoruba 21%; Igbo or Ibo 18% Ethnicity: Hausa and the Fulani 10%; more than 250 ethnic groups r 500 sa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani, ove Language: English (official), Hau additional indigenous languages ntial Republic Political system: Federal Preside twice in the world, slightly larger than Geography: 32nd largest country the size of California 45%; indigenous 5% Religion: Christian 50%; Muslim

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C

hristianity is dominant in the southern part of Nigeria, Islam is dominant in the north, and indigenous religious influences are scattered throughout, often overlapping with Christian and Muslim beliefs. Religious freedom is constitutionally mandated, but violent Islamist groups and ruling elites in the north have made Christians subject to varying degrees of persecution in some areas. In most of the country, however, Christianity is freely practiced and is growing, at least numerically, and in some places dramatically. Challenges for the government include dealing with widespread corruption, poverty in many areas, the introduction of Shari’a law in some northern states, and terrorist groups like Boko Haram.

Prayer Needs: Churches of almost all denominations are growing. Nigeria is now the largest Christian country in Africa, with more than 85 million people claiming church membership. As percentage of population, Christians have grown from 21 percent in the 1950s to 50 percent today. But many of Nigeria’s Christian leaders see the ongoing need for deeper levels of maturity—for new Christians to be discipled and for the Christian community to have a greater effect on the culture and its problems. With increasing numbers of Christians, there is also a great need for leadership development to serve in growing congregations and reach non-Christians. This is the core mission of Walk Thru the Bible and creates numerous opportunities for our resources.

• Pray for God to raise up new leaders to help Nigeria’s many churches disciple its members toward greater maturity.

• Pray for mission and outreach efforts as Nigeria’s churches reach the unreached in their own country and send missionaries to other countries.

• Pray for opportunities and funding for Walk Thru the Bible’s partners in Nigeria to train pastors and leaders and reach congregations with biblically reliable discipleship tools. Ask for great fruitfulness as this ministry addresses Nigeria’s most pressing spiritual needs. .

Sources: U.S. Department of State (www.state.gov), CIA World Factbook (www.cia.gov), and Operation World

by Jason Mandryk, 7th edition, ©2010.

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Summer Slowdown?

Sometimes This Is When the Schedule Heats Up

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or many ministries, summertime is downtime. Students are out of school, families go on vacation, church activity slows down, funding shrinks, and projects slip into planning phases until fall.

But at Walk Thru the Bible, this is not a season of reduced ministry. It never has been in our publishing area or in our international work, although live events have generally followed the seasons of church activity. But in general, summer is a time to act on the opportunities in front of us.

And one trend in opportunities over the last few years has been a rise in speaking engagements for President Phil Tuttle.

We asked Phil why this has been this case and, more importantly, how it benefits Walk Thru the Bible.

Q: What is different about your speaking schedule in the last few years—not only in the summers, but

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also as a general trend?

Phil: Like many ministry leaders, I’ve always gotten invitations to speak at events for other ministries and organizations, which I’ve loved doing. We’ve built a lot of relationships with other ministries that way. But the kinds of invitations I get have really diversified recently and provided some unique opportunities to get Walk Thru the Bible in front of people who, in some cases, may have never heard of us before.

What are some examples?

I had never given a commencement address before, but I spoke at Carver College’s commencement this spring. It’s a historically AfricanAmerican college right here in our own city, yet we haven’t had much involvement with it before.

They wanted to give me an honorary doctorate [see news item on p. 4], which was really cool. They have

Phil and Ellen Tuttle introduced the work of Walk Thru the Bible to many church leaders unfamiliar with the ministry at the Thrive Leadership Conference in California in April.

an interesting story—begun by missionaries who were expelled from China during World War II and named in honor of George Washington Carver, who died in early 1943, the year they began. It was started as a Bible college, now with a broader liberal arts curriculum but still heavily focused on teaching the Bible. It is producing really good leaders for the African-American church and many other areas of society. I really appreciated the opportunity to speak, and I have no doubt it will lead to an ongoing relationship.

I also spoke recently at the Thrive Leadership Conference near Sacramento, hosted by Bayside Church.

It’s attended by about 4,000 pastors and church leaders, most from very creative and innovative churches. That was exciting, and I thought it was really interesting that about half the people who came by the Walk Thru the Bible booth had never

heard of us, and many among the other half only knew us from attending one of our events like Walk Thru the Old Testament a long time ago. So it was a good introduction for some, and a reintroduction for others—and in an area of the country where we want to establish a stronger presence.

Ray Johnston, the pastor of the host church and leader of the conference, sees Walk Thru the Bible as a good partner in helping make the Bible more central in the lives of pastors and churches.

Again, it wasn’t just an event for us. I really think it will grow into an ongoing relationship and eventually get our events and resources into many more people’s lives.

And then the national conference for about 500 staff and volunteers of Child Evangelism Fellowship was in May in North Carolina. Getting the Word into people’s lives has always been their

SUMMER IS A TIME TO ACT ON THE OPPORTUNITIES IN FRONT OF US.

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focus, but they are also trying to reformat their ministry for a new generation. My series of messages on Josiah—how the catalytic event in his life was when the priests found the Hebrew Scriptures while they were repairing the Temple, how it changed him personally, and how he taught the Bible to the people—is a great fit with their ministry, just as it is with ours. A Willow Creek study has shown that the most powerful predictor of spiritual growth in a Christian’s life is not how often he or she goes to church but whether that person engages with Scripture at least four times a week.

That’s what we help people do—we make God’s Word accessible to them—and CEF is very focused on that as well.

That ministry has special significance for me because I came to know Christ through one of their Good News Clubs when I was 9—something I’m eternally grateful for. So I was excited to speak at their national gathering.

Ellen and I are teamteaching a marriage conference for a Chick-fil-A/ WinShape marriage cruise too, which will be amazing.

It starts in Athens and sails to several ports on the Greek mainland and its islands. Obviously not a huge sacrifice for us. We’ll teach on marriage each evening and set up each couple to have a conversation each night that will encourage real communication and deepen their relationship.

have a strong presence in Pennsylvania, and we want to keep our relationships in that region strong. We are not as strong in New York, so speaking at the Word of Life Conference Center in Schroon Lake in August will help us there. And then I’ll be at Mount Hermon in California again this summer, which I do every two years—again, helping us build relationships in the West. I love to teach there because it’s a good environment to roll out new material and see how people respond to it.

That’s a huge part of these events for me.

All of these conferences are great ministry opportunities, and obviously that’s the main focus. But they are also good for prototyping new resources, editing the content, improving the delivery, and so on. They get to hear fresh content, and we get to hone what we’re producing, so it’s a win-win.

“WE GET AN UPCLOSE LOOK AT OUR MINISTRY THAT OTHER ENVIRONMENTS MAY NOT ALWAYS GIVE US.”

You mentioned the benefit of establishing more of a presence in the West. Are you speaking in any other regions that are strategic for Walk Thru the Bible?

Absolutely. I will be speaking at a Bible conference for families at the Tuscarora Conference Center in Mount Bethel, Penn., in July. We already

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That and the geographic diversity are clearly important for Walk Thru the Bible.

How else are these speaking events strategic for us?

One reason these conferences are an ideal environment for prototyping new material is that they are more than just speaking events. When you break people into small groups, you get to watch how the discussion questions work. We’ll test-drive some of those questions, and participants will probably raise a few others. So we really do get an up-close look at our ministry that other environments may not always give us.

They are also great in a marketing sense.

I don’t mean that commercially as much as just getting exposure and expanding our ministry reach, which is what all ministries have a heart to do. These events put us in front of pastors and lay leaders, and if something we do ministers to them, they go and tell others. It’s a very effective way to get into churches and reach more people.

All of these venues also allow us to share some of our global vision with attendees, which helps us find more people who want to partner with us. If our vision overlaps with the vision of

someone in the audience, we’ve found a new supporter. We can connect with each other to reach people around the world. So in terms of expanding our global ministry, these events are vital. .

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Into the Word w e e k l y

d e v o t i o n a l s

o n

the FRUIT of the SPIRIT

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alk Thru the Bible exists to ignite passion for God’s Word wherever we go and to provide the opportunities and resources for eternal truth to work its way into people’s hearts.

One of the best ways for the truth of Scripture to sink in is to meditate on it daily. The following devotionals, adapted from indeed magazine, are a valuable tool to aid that process.

One devotional is provided for each of the next 13 weeks. You can read the weekly reading any day during your week, but you may also want to revisit it every day of the week to make it a regular part of your time with God. If so, many have found this approach helpful: On Monday, read the devotional. Become generally familiar with the Bible verse, its original context, and the insights in the devotional reading. On Tuesday, look upward. How does this verse or passage apply to your relationship with God? What does it teach you about His will and His heart? What aspect of His character is He inviting you to experience and enjoy? On Wednesday, look inward. How does this truth apply to your heart

WEEK 1 July 4-8

Galatians 5:16-26

INTIMATE UNION Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25) IN WORD For centuries, God’s people watched the Spirit work. They saw the Spirit lead through the wilderness, inspire the prophets, fill the temple, and empower the kings. Still, He was a phenomenon, not a way of life. No, the prescribed way of life was the law of Moses. And though the Law was good and complete in itself, it never provided a complete relationship.

That changed after Jesus ascended.

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and your own spiritual growth? What does it teach you about yourself, your needs, or your goals in life? In what aspects of your personal life is God inviting you to grow and mature? On Thursday, look around. How does this truth apply to your relationship with others? What does it teach you about how to relate to them? What is God inviting you to do differently in your relationships? On Friday, look outward. How does this verse or passage apply to your ministry and mission in life—to your role in God’s kingdom, in society, and in the world? What does it teach you about God’s purposes? What part of His mission is He inviting you to participate in? On Saturday, look forward. How does this verse or passage apply to your future, both in this age and in eternity? What does it teach you about God’s plan for your life, now and forever? What aspect of eternity is God inviting you to participate in?

This approach can help you look at God’s Word from every angle and incorporate its implications into your life. As you saturate yourself in Scripture, God will shape your heart to align with His own.

The Law that was written on stone tablets became the Law that was written on hearts. And the Writer was more than an abstract principle; He was God Himself, the Spirit from eternity past, the very Breath of the Almighty. Just as God exhaled into the first Adam, He breathed Himself into those who have faith in the second Adam—Jesus. Flesh once made from dust and destined to return to dust became a holy habitation; God came to live in very human, very earthen vessels.

The temple of stone became a temple of flesh—organic, dynamic flesh.

Jesus is the prototype, of course.

He was the very definition of the temple of God on earth. But after His ascension, what temple was left? The one on Mount Zion, with its tattered veil and its spiritually blind guardians? No, not good enough. God had ordained a better dwelling: us.

IN DEED We had no idea that all past tabernacles and temples were pictures of Jesus and blueprints for the human heart, did we? Both nervous and infatuated, we once wondered if the God of our dreams would pay us any attention, only to find that He now approaches us in an intimate union beyond anything human flesh has ever experienced. It’s the greatest romance the world has ever known.

The question for us today is whether we’re even aware of the intimacy. Has the marriage grown comfortable—maybe even distant? If so, go back to the beginning. It’s astounding that God dwells within. Rekindle the flame, and let Him burn.

WEEK 2

WEEK 3

WEEK 4

Galatians 5:16-26

Galatians 5:16-26

Song of Songs 2:1-4

July 11-15

July 18-22

July 25-29

THE DEEPER PASSION

FRUIT AND THE SPIRIT

LOVE

Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. (Galatians 5:16)

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)

His banner over me is love. (Song of Songs 2:4)

IN WORD You will follow your passions.

Yes, there may be times when you compel yourself to say, “not my will but Thine,” but the sustaining drive of your life will be somewhat in line with the deepest loves you treasure. So when the Bible tells us to live by the Spirit and not by the desires of the sinful nature, it is also implying an important relationship issue: our love for the Spirit must run deeper than our love for the world.

The contrast really is that simple.

We have a constant choice: whether we are going to be in love with God or with the world, the flesh, or the sins we once held dear. That should be an easy choice— after all, God is far more worthy than any other—but our other suitors know just how to dazzle us with empty words and false promises. Sometimes we’re far too easy prey. And when we are, we gratify the desires of the sinful nature, just as Paul warns. We do so not because we have evil intent, but because we’ve misdirected our love. We’ve let the intimacy with the Spirit grow cold and turned our eyes in other directions.

Turn back. The blessing of living by the Spirit—basking in His love and returning His embrace—is far greater than anything the sinful nature can deliver.

IN DEED You may have thought of your life as a series of moral choices, some pleasing to God, others not. While that’s true—there are moral choices that God has very strong opinions about—that’s not to be our focus. Our focus is not to be on banishing sin from our lives but on falling deeply, passionately in love with the One who redeemed us and has made a home with us. If we get that right, the sinful nature doesn’t stand a chance.

Cultivate love. Develop your relationship with the Spirit. Spend time with Him, praise Him, ask Him to have His way with you. The closer you get to Him, the farther from sin you will be.

IN WORD All those who desire to live godly lives have prayed for these fruits.

We want more love, so we pray for God to increase our love. We want more patience, so we pray for patience. We all know the routine. We’ve all sought the gifts of the Spirit with a shopping-list mentality.

But there is a better way. Instead of seeking more of the fruits, we must seek more of the Spirit. When we think we need more love, we really need more of Jesus in us. Or, perhaps more accurately, we need Jesus to have more of us. The same goes for our joy, our peace, our patience, and so on. These are not nine individual characteristics that we can isolate and work on individually. They are integral parts of the mind of Christ. The more we abide in His Spirit, the more we will have them. When we lack certain fruits, we lack fellowship with the Spirit who gives them.

The means to be more fruitful is to ask for closer fellowship with the Source. When we have that, the love, joy, peace, etc., will come.

This is God’s design for His people.

His plan is not simply to improve us and make us better people. His plan is to inhabit us. The fruit of the Spirit is not about us and our deficiencies. It is about God and His presence in this world. If you find yourself lacking, the problem is not an isolated characteristic; it is fellowship with the personal, living God. He aims to live His life in you.

IN DEED Believe it or not, you—along with other believers—are the means to display God’s character in this world. If we don’t display Him, He won’t be seen.

That’s an awesome responsibility. It’s also an awesome privilege. Do you lack His fruitfulness? Then you lack Him—not necessarily His salvation, but His lordship and His fellowship. Don’t just ask for love, joy, or anything else. Ask for Him.

IN WORD The Song of Songs is an amorous book because our God is an amorous God. Does it seem irreverent to say so? It can’t be, not when we realize the most passionate kind of love could not have originated anywhere but in the passionate heart of God. It is certainly not Satan’s invention, nor that of a depraved human condition. It is experienced by emotional beings made in the image of an emotional God. Our love reflects His. Like the bridegroom in the Song of Songs, our Bridegroom, Jesus, has set His love over us as His declaration of victory. It is our identity. We know that He loves us, and because of that, we love Him (1 John 4:19). Not only do we love Him, we love each other. It is the identifying feature of a Spirit-filled Christian. Where love is absent, so is the Spirit. Where the Spirit is absent, so is love.

So important is this characteristic that Jesus spent the major part of His last words to His disciples on the subject. In John 13–16, He first demonstrates love and then preaches on it: love and obedience, love and the Spirit, love and prayer, love and His friendship, love and joy. Then in His parting prayer, He asks this of the Father: “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:23). It is an intimate love—“I in them and you in me”— between a loving God, the beloved Son, and a love-hungry people. If there is any single mark of belief, it is love.

IN DEED Does your life bear the banner of love? Are you aware of God’s great love for you? Do you have great love for Him and for others? Do not be deceived: No matter how spiritually mature a believer is, it is a false spirituality if he or she is not thoroughly saturated in love. “God is love.

Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16). There is no way around it. The Christian life is a loving life.

An unloving life is not Christian. Let love, above all else, define you.

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WEEK 5

WEEK 6

Nehemiah 8:1-12

Colossians 3:15-17

August 1-5

August 8-12

WEEK 7

August 15-19

Proverbs 19:11; Ecclesiastes 7:8-9

JOY

PEACE

PATIENCE

The joy of the Lord is your strength.

(Nehemiah 8:10)

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.

(Colossians 3:15)

A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. (Proverbs 19:11)

IN WORD It was a day of grief and repentance, that day the scribe Ezra read “the Book of the Law of God” in the hearing of the assembly. A generation of Israelites suddenly realized what many previous generations had forsaken—a covenant of love with the great and mighty God. And, according to Nehemiah, they wept.

Have you ever wept over your failures? It’s a humbling experience, pouring out your heart over grievous sins that can’t be undone. The human heart never feels weaker than when it is faced with its undeniable shortcomings. Our humanity is shot through with sin, and there’s nothing we can do about it. We’re weak and helpless.

Believe it or not, that’s a great place to be. God meets us in our weakness and He exalts the humble. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). It is a blessed frailty to have no claim before God, no words with which to justify ourselves, no bargaining power whatsoever. When we can accept that, we can accept His provision; and there is no greater joy than His provision.

It is all we need. It takes us from weakness to strength because God’s power—His very presence—is greatest when we are most visibly vulnerable. We can lay down our stressful, painful attempts at self-sufficiency, and we can accept His sufficiency instead. What greater joy is there than to realize it all falls on His shoulders and not on ours?

IN WORD Peace is elusive. Not only is it elusive to governments in the world’s hot spots of conflict, it is elusive in public and private institutions. Unfortunately, it is also elusive in churches and families. And, most unsettling to us, it is elusive in our own hearts.

Ever since the Garden of Eden, the human heart is by nature unsettled. We are restless creatures because we have separated ourselves from our created purpose. The natural dependence our first parents felt for God has been lost on us. Insecurity reigns within; and where insecurity reigns, peace doesn’t.

The reason we live in a world that is in conflict is because we have hearts in conflict. We want to institute the rule of Christ in our hearts, but He must replace the reign of self—with all its fears, ambitions, passions, and false hopes—and that takes time. Human beings in such turmoil find it difficult to live in peace with others, whether it is on the job, in the church, or at home. Those who do not get along with others are invariably uncomfortable with themselves. Those who are at peace within are almost always at peace with others. Even when others rage against them—as they did with Jesus on the cross, Stephen before the Sanhedrin, and Paul from city to city—they do nothing to fuel the conflict. They have no need.

They are at peace with themselves and at peace with God.

IN WORD It is profoundly ironic that those who are most aggressive in asserting their rights and establishing themselves are least likely to earn a respectable reputation.

There is something disturbing about those who are rash and overly assertive. They must have what they want now. They are ruled by their whims. They carry the defining marks of this world, and they are unimpressive to everyone but themselves.

By contrast, those who are patient— slow to anger, deliberate in their steps, reluctant to speak or to judge hastily—are those held in highest regard by others.

They do not assert their reputation, they simply earn it. They lose the argument but win respect. The world takes notice because they are noticeably unlike this world. They carry the marks of wisdom. In fact, whether they intend it or not, they are like Jesus.

Jesus could have won the kingdoms of this world at the Temptation, but He waited. He could have established His kingdom when He rode into Jerusalem, but He waited. He could have condemned those who crucified Him, but He waited.

He could have called legions of angels to defend Him, but He waited. He could have returned yesterday, but He waited.

Why is He so excruciatingly patient?

Because the greater the investment in His people—in both time and spiritual maturity—the greater the benefit in the eternal scheme.

IN DEED Paul says we are to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. He doesn’t say peace is simply to exist in our hearts.

He doesn’t say it is to influence our hearts periodically. It is to rule.

Take this diagnostic test: Are you in conflict with others? It is likely a reflection of the condition of your heart. Ask God to still your turbulent waters. Let Jesus rule in the deepest corners of your being. Know the depths of His peace.

IN DEED Have you learned that principle for yourself? Sometimes the best answer is a slow one—or none at all. Sometimes there is no pressing need to defend yourself when you know your position will be established in the end. Sometimes the person who offends you will eventually come around—if you give him time. If you are patient in all things, you are like Jesus.

Your wisdom will be to your own glory, and also to His.

IN DEED Do you know God’s joy? Have you ever heard Him speak into your grief and say, with Ezra, “This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength”? The joyless Christian is bearing burdens no human is capable of bearing. The joyful Christian has come to grips with his weakness and accepted God’s strength by casting all burdens on Him. Learn the art of casting those burdens; be joyful and be strong.

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WEEK 8

August 22-26

Proverbs 11:17; Colossians 3:12

WEEK 9

WEEK 10

Psalm 23

Psalm 89:1-8

August 29–September 2

September 5-9

KINDNESS

GOODNESS

FAITHFULNESS

A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself. (Proverbs 11:17)

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life. (Psalm 23:6)

IN WORD Kindness is defined as an attitude or action that benefits others. It is directed toward others, enjoyed by others, and edifying for others. Cruelty, too, is defined as something directed toward others. But this proverb doesn’t focus on the effect of kindness (or lack thereof) on others. It skips the basic definitions and goes straight to the side effects. It focuses on the results on oneself.

Just as patience ironically promotes those who are most reluctant to promote themselves, so kindness builds up those who are most interested in building up others. Cruel people try to give themselves a boost by harming others, but the strategy backfires. Harming others will eventually cause trouble for the cruel person. Likewise, kindness will eventually be returned to the kind. People who help others also help themselves, and so does God. But we must be careful how we define kindness. True kindness will prompt a person to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). No one would question Jesus’ kindness, but it could be a very confrontational kindness toward those who distorted truth and righteousness.

A wise person will accept that: “Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil on my head,” wrote David (Psalm 141:5). Kindness is an intentional effort to pursue what is good for another person.

IN WORD For something to be worthwhile in our age, it must be amazing, outstanding, remarkable, or awesome.

We are so overwhelmed with superlatives that we must keep coming up with more attention-grabbing adjectives with each new season of advertising. But God often advertises Himself in refreshing simplicity.

He is good. Through and through, pure and simple, He is good. His attitude toward us is good, His will toward us is good, and His works on our behalf are good. We are unaccustomed to pure forms in our world—everything is tainted with corruption—but with God, no superlative is necessary. From any angle we look at Him, we see goodness.

There’s a remarkable transformation for us in His goodness. God blesses so that His people will become blessers. He gives so that we will give. He loves so we will love. He forgives so we will forgive.

His demeanor toward us is to be reflected in our demeanor toward others. It isn’t just a responsibility to fulfill; it’s a natural reaction. When we’ve been treated so well, it’s natural to treat others well. His goodness takes root in us; we become good, like Him.

O Lord God Almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O Lord, and your faithfulness surrounds you. (Psalm 89:8)

IN DEED Have people been unkind to you? There’s a chance that the reason lies within yourself—not that you are unworthy of the kindness of others, but perhaps you have not made an effort to be kind. A person reaps what he sows, and if one has sown kindness, he will reap it as well.

Perhaps others take your kindness for granted. God will not. An unbiblical saying asserts that God helps those who help themselves. Biblical truth says that God helps those who help others. Do you qualify? Then they, and you, will benefit.

IN DEED Most of us are busy trying to impress others with a remarkable personality, amazing skills, or our outstanding achievements. God’s Spirit in us, however, will not make us flashy. He will make us good.

If others do not see in us a simple, uncorrupted goodness, they do not see the Spirit of God. We forget that behind every miracle, behind every teaching, behind every revelation and prophecy, there is the goodwill of God. Goodness underlies everything He does. He is a beneficent Creator, and a beneficent Creator births beneficent children. Do you bear His goodness? Demonstrate it to someone today. Show your world what God is like.

IN WORD If you were to do a biblical word study on “faithfulness,” you would find something mildly surprising: The vast majority of biblical references to faithfulness are about God, not about us.

God’s faithfulness is an established fact in Scripture; man’s is not. We are encouraged to be faithful, but we are always found wanting. God, however, is constant.

His faithfulness reaches to the skies (see Psalm 36:5; 57:10; 108:4), and His love and faithfulness are semantically paired so often that they are clearly intertwined. His love is unchanging; there is nothing fickle about it—not even from generation to generation (Psalm 100:5). True faithfulness endures forever (Psalm 117:2). It can do no other.

This is why faithfulness must be a fruit of the Spirit. It cannot be of the flesh.

Humanity measures faithfulness in terms of months and years; God measures it in terms of eternity. We cannot maintain such commitment unless the power to do so is given from above. It simply is not within us to be covenant-keepers for long.

Nearly every biblical covenant originates in heaven and is maintained unilaterally by the covenant-keeping God. His faithfulness alone is everlasting.

IN DEED If you needed any sense of security about your salvation, there it is.

God keeps you because He is faithful.

He knows the fickleness of those He pursues, and He pursues us nonetheless.

He knew how unstable we were before He committed to keep us.

But we cannot remain unstable, not if we’re filled with His Spirit. The flesh is weak, but we no longer live according to the flesh. Never use the excuse, “I’m only human.” You’re a human with the Spirit of the living God dwelling within.

Faithfulness is possible for us when we are wholly dependent on Him. His faithfulness surrounds His throne. Enthrone Him in your heart, and it will surround you, too.

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WEEK 11

September 12-16

Philippians 4:4-5

WEEK 12

September 19-23

Proverbs 25:28; 2 Timothy 1:7

WEEK 13

September 26-30

Galatians 5:16-26

GENTLENESS

SELF-CONTROL

LOVE SHOWS

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. (Philippians 4:5)

Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control. (Proverbs 25:28)

IN WORD David was gentle toward his rebellious son (2 Samuel 18:5). Jesus came into this world with a spirit of gentleness (Matthew 11:29; 21:5). Paul had a tender attitude toward the churches he had founded (2 Corinthians 10:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:7). Throughout Scripture, we are instructed to put on gentleness as though it’s a required garment. Why? Because God has been gentle with us. It’s who He is, and we are to be like Him. We may not envision God as being gentle. We read of His anger toward humanity before the ark was built; of His command for Israel to ruthlessly conquer the Canaanites; of His judgments on Israel in the prophets; and of His harsh condemnation of our sin when He laid our iniquity on a bloodied, beaten Jesus.

But all of this points to His absolute, uncompromising, holy purity. His heart is thoroughly gentle. When our confession and humility allow for His gentleness, He always chooses it over His judgment.

Have you felt His gentle touch?

When you received mercy rather than condemnation, it was there. Every day when He feeds you, clothes you, and surrounds you with air to breathe, you feel His tender provision. If there is anyone out there who loves you as you are, you have seen a reflection of His gentle nature. In Jesus, we know a gentle God.

IN WORD The contemporary church is plagued with problems of self-discipline.

Sinful behaviors have infiltrated our congregations possibly at unprecedented levels. One reason self-control is such a problem for so many Christians is that it feels like a work of the flesh. We are told to live Spirit-filled lives, so we become passive. We have incorrectly assumed that any effort on our part is “works,” a product of the flesh and a symptom of legalism. We end up with a faith without works, and as we find out, that kind of faith is dead.

Self-control is perhaps the most confusing of all the fruits of the Spirit. How can it involve the self and the Spirit at the same time? If it’s self-control, how can it be Spirit-control? It can’t. But, contrary to popular teaching, the Bible never tells us to be controlled by the Spirit, at least not in the sense that we lose our personality and will. We are to be born of the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, led by the Spirit, inspired by the Spirit, and sealed by the Spirit. But we are not controlled by the Spirit. The Spirit enables us to have self-control.

A lack of self-control will cause us to neglect necessary disciplines like prayer, Bible study, contemplation, evangelism, and more. It will also cause us to indulge even godly desires in inappropriate ways. A lack of discipline distorts work, sexuality, entertainment, nutrition, and stewardship of time and money. If our lives were compared to an ancient city, self-indulgence would be the weakness in our walls. Erosion will eventually cause our protection to collapse and allow our enemies to raid.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22)

IN DEED If the fruits of the Spirit are God’s display of His character through the church to a searching world, then gentleness is one of the most needed elements of that display. The world does not know of this gentle God—it portrays Him as either viciously judgmental or blandly irrelevant. It has not seen enough examples of righteous, patient, redemptive gentleness. Be one of those examples. Find a hurting person and demonstrate God’s gentle touch.

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IN DEED A life of godly discipline is useful to God. He can accomplish much with it, because it can steward His vast resources appropriately. The uncontrolled life squanders God’s treasures—spiritual and material—and invites attack. At all costs, let the Spirit empower you to learn self-control. It is the key to managing all other fruitfulness.

IN WORD The Spirit lives within us, but He has an external agenda. From the warm fire of fellowship in our hearts, He expects to shine. The description in Galatians 5:22 about the fruit of the Spirit is not about productivity. It’s about character.

Furthermore, it’s not simply about attitudes; it’s about Him. Have you noticed that? These are not traits to cultivate. This is not a description of what we are supposed to look like, per se. This is a description of what He already does look like. The fruit of the Spirit is supposed to come forth from us because the Spirit comes forth from us.

The New Testament is not a covenant to reform fallen flesh; it’s a covenant to plant the life of God in His people. Paul didn’t mean to provide us a to-do list here. This verse is not about who we strive to be, but about who we display.

That’s why when we ask God to help us with patience, joy, self-control, or any other fruit, we’re a little off base. He doesn’t mind so much; He applauds the desire. But He would prefer that we not partition His Spirit into distinguishable traits to acquire. His desire is that His life in us be visible. When we ask, we simply need to ask that He magnify Himself in us and help us to take a back seat to His leadership. He doesn’t want us to focus on our improving character, but on His constant virtue.

IN DEED This list of fruit is not so much for us to check areas in which we need improvement, but is more an indicator as to whether our fellowship with the Spirit is as deep as it ought to be. If we find ourselves lacking in love, for example, we need not seek more love. We should rather seek more closeness to the Spirit of love. Our insufficiencies should never lead us in search of more fruit, but in search of the fruitful One. In His arms, under His leadership, and given over to His influence, the fruit will come. .

Step Into the Story

A

Lifelong Impact

Help Us Reach 800,000 in Southern Africa

“

I now read the Bible a lot more because I understand it better!” That’s the testimony of a member whose church in Johannesburg, South Africa, just went through the God’s Grand Story campaign. Another participant said he never read the Bible before doing God’s Grand Story, but now he reads the Bible regularly. And another said she is much more aware of God’s role in her life now.

These responses confirm the purpose of the God’s Grand Story curriculum. In a survey in South Africa, the campaign had these significant results: • the number of people who read their Bible 5-6 times a week increased from 26 to 50 percent; • the number of people who said the Bible has prompted certain actions and decisions in their lives increased from 50 to 88 percent; • respondents who had a strong desire to share their faith doubled;

• the number of people who placed a high value on serving others rose from 39 to 59 percent; • 75 percent of respondents attributed positive change in their lives to reading the Bible (up from 57 percent).

“God’s Grand Story fulfilled what we were hoping for,” said Andy Barnard, pastor of Renown Church in Johannesburg. “The congregation was more excited about the Bible. It is easier to preach because people now have an understanding of the outline of Scripture. I believe they will now spend more time in the Word.”

What Is God’s Grand Story?

God’s Grand Story is a comprehensive campaign for churches that involves virtually every ministry of the participating church, engaging the entire congregation in daily Bible reading and

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Step into the Story

(Contd.)

with Scripture at least four times a week, lives prayer for at least six weeks. change dramatically. And when lives change, The campaign launches with a Walk Thru the families, churches, communities, and even nations Old Testament live event and then follows up with change. daily Bible reading, a weekly Bible study overview of the THE KEY VARIABLE High Impact Discipleship Old Testament with DVD and guidebook, and sermons that IN DISCIPLESHIP introduce and explore the Old That means Walk Thru the IS NOT Testament in six major sections.

Bible partners in southern Africa The campaign doesn’t just have the opportunity to transform NECESSARILY start the momentum. It keeps it the effectiveness of thousands of CHURCH going—officially for six weeks, churches and close to a million but that’s long enough to dig people over the next year in 15 ATTENDANCE deeper into Scripture, undercountries in the region. It will cost OR EVEN stand its overarching story, $800,000 to implement the plan, develop new habits that can last but the math is very encouraging: OCCASIONAL a lifetime, and ignite a church’s the enormous impact of this resource BIBLE passion for God’s Word. Durcan be realized for only a dollar per ing the six-week period, small person.

READING. IT’S groups and Sunday school That’s a lot of impact at REGULAR BIBLE classes are energized and lives minimal cost. For $1 per person, are transformed. It’s long we can offer at least 800,000 people ENGAGEMENT. enough not only to expose a the God’s Grand Story experience, person to Scripture but also to which includes daily readings, help him or her develop the long-term practice of discussions, sermons, and ultimately a lifetime of reading it daily. The entire culture of a church can engagement in God’s Word. This could be a key shift. moment in the spiritual life of the southern Africa That’s because statistics show that the key region, and there’s no better time to step into their variable in discipleship is not necessarily church stories. With your help, God’s kingdom in this attendance or even occasional Bible reading. It’s region will grow dramatically through this initiaregular Bible engagement. When people engage tive. .

How You Can Help Please pray for the impact of God’s Grand Story in southern Africa—that it will change lives, revitalize churches, and establish for many people a lifelong practice of reading God’s Word.

We need to raise $800,000 in order to get this teaching into hearts and lives throughout South Asia. That’s only $1 per person to reach 800,000 people! You can reach 100 people with $100, 250 people with $250, or 500 with $500. Please consider whether God might be prompting you to partner with us in the launch and distribution of God’s Grand Story, and please let us know by: • calling Mitchell Ridgeway, manager of donor services, at 678-578-5534 • connecting to www.walkthru.org/donate 28

Leader Profile

The Transforming Power of the Word SAMUEL EKLOU, NATIONAL DIRECTOR FOR TOGO

S

amuel Eklou’s dream is to see his country transformed. For starters, that would mean Togo’s Christians growing from about 30 percent of the population to much more.

But it would also mean a deeper understanding of Scripture among the Christians already there. And in Samuel’s mind, the two go hand in hand.

Samuel has been with Walk Thru the Bible for 10 years, and he has seen how lives can be changed through the power of God’s Word. Even recently, 300 pastors, leaders, and lay teachers representing about 60 churches attended a Crucible training in Lomé, the capital city, and God’s presence was tangible. “We had a lot of holy moments,” he said. “I couldn’t talk after one of the sessions. People felt that God was healing and touching them. The impact was so great on our ministries and our lives.”

About 60 percent of those participants will take the teaching to their own churches and others in their regions. Courses like Crucible, including others in the Biblical Character Series, provide several sessions of content for pastors and smallgroup leaders to use to help people glean biblical insights they can apply to their daily lives.

Samuel encourages churches to use these resources as part of their strategy for growing mature Christians. To help people engage with

Scripture on a long-term basis, he has also recruited 80 churches to go through the God’s Grand Story campaign. The feedback has been extremely positive. “Several pastors confess that there are insights they didn’t know from the Old Testament, but God’s Grand Story makes it easier by the way it analyzes Scripture and brings out the truths,” he said.

“They testify that the numbers from their churches double just because of the way Scripture has come alive for them. Their members bring others to the church. Everyone who was faithful to the devotionals for the full six weeks has a transformed life. The impact was so huge.”

That confirms Samuel’s belief that growth will happen as Christians get deeper into the Bible.

He has seen not only how individual lives have been changed by engaging with God’s Word, but also how families have been changed through biblical resources on marriage and family—a huge need in Togo, as parents are looking for help on raising children and many couples are learning biblical patterns for communication in marriage.

“Walk Thru the Bible has been a great tool for the church in Togo—a great blessing in my personal life and in our churches.” Samuel says. “As a pastor, you can just be preaching, not really focusing on Scripture. But Walk Thru the Bible helps us bring people back into the Scriptures to grow as Christians.”

So Samuel’s dream is being fulfilled as lives are being changed. He firmly believes the nation will be transformed through the teaching of God’s Word—and that Walk Thru the Bible is one of the keys for that to happen. .

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Donor Profile

Extending Their Influence JAY AND KRISTI DEAN

J

ay and Kristi Dean have been Walk Thru the Bible supporters for almost 20 years. They are very involved in their church community in Westmont, Ill., have served with AWANA for a combined 71 years, and faithfully give to ministries that extend their influence around the world.

They are clear about their mission in life— and how Walk Thru the Bible helps them fulfill it.

“Our hearts resonate with this ministry’s mission,” Jay says. “Ultimately it’s leading people to Jesus Christ, making disciples so we can fill heaven with more people.

“Walk Thru the Bible utilizes the resources they’re given in a wise manner. I’ve seen other organizations that aren’t using their resources effectively, but I believe Walk Thru is a solid investment. They use every single resource to the best of their ability, for God’s glory.”

Kristi agrees. “This ministry takes first class materials based on the Bible, goes to the nations, and finds amazing people who know their local cultures, and then they’re able to multiply their influence. It trusts leaders to make decisions in their own countries, and that makes a bigger difference than just sending Americans over to teach and train people.”

“I like the fact that Walk Thru the Bible produces its own material,” Jay explained. “The resources are top notch. I’ve shared with my AWANA kids some of the materials I’ve learned from Walk Thru, and it has impacted them. Just

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like people in places like Ghana are desperate for great biblical resources, so are we. When I hear something high quality, I want to share it.”

“One of my friends at spin class came up to me and said, ‘I need to get closer to God,’” Kristi said, “and I got to help her do that. I’ve learned through Walk Thru the Bible resources, and I got to pass along what I knew to her to help her.”

As strong supporters of their local church, the Deans appreciate that focus of Walk Thru the Bible. “The ministry provides materials to the local pastor to help them meet the needs of their local church,” Jay said. “That’s an important mission that’s often overlooked.”

Walk Thru the Bible isn’t the only ministry the Dean family supports, but it has been a significant one in their stewardship growth. “God has really stretched and challenged us about how much we can give to ministries,” Jay explained.

“We’ve learned so much about giving throughout our relationship with Walk Thru the Bible. The biggest thing I’ve learned is this: Everything comes from God. Your time, your talents, your treasure, it all belongs to God. I’ve learned when God asks me to do something, I trust Him.” “Someday when I stand before Jesus’ throne, I want to hear, ‘well done,’” Kristi said. “We have time, talents, and treasure to use for God in our lifetimes, and I want to use them responsibly. We trust Walk Thru the Bible, we know the leadership, and I’m confident that when we give to this ministry we are doing what God is asking of us.” .

The Last Word

A

s you can tell from this issue of Pathways,

summer is a busy time at Walk Thru the Bible.

Some of us will take a vacation, but the minis-

try never does. We are hard at work to ignite

passion for God’s Word and give people around the world

the opportunity to connect with it.

Summer—specifically the end of June—also marks

the end of another fiscal year for us. As this financial

period draws to a close, I’m reminded of all the people

who have given so generously to support the global mis-

sion. I’m humbled by the many partners in ministry who

have sacrificed their resources to further our kingdom

impact. It is an honor to serve you.

If you have invested in this ministry, thank you! Thank you for your

Thank you for being God’s provision to Walk Thru the Bible to enable

we do around the world. Thank you for your trust and confidence

wisely. Thank you for your partnership.

generosity.

us to do what

to steward your gift

If you have never supported Walk Thru the Bible financially, or if

while since you have, this is a great time to invest in what God is

it has been a

doing through this work. Biblical truth changes lives, families, churches, communities, . . . everything!

Because we believe that so strongly, we are investing our lives to help people everywhere read, understand, and live it out. Because the ministry doesn’ t slow down this

summer—or ever, actually—we still need your support to take advant

opportunities God has provided.

age of all the

I trust you are encouraged by the kingdom-expanding work you’ve

in this issue of Pathways, and I hope you see in it the fruits of your

your gifts, prayers, and encouragement, we will continue to stand

changed by helping people engage with the power of God’s Word.

read about

faithfulness. By

together to see lives

Sincerely,

Michael Gunnin

Vice President for Advancement

31

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5550 Triangle Parkway, Suite 250 Peachtree Corners, Georgia 30092

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IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF PATHWAYS: The 40-year anniversary of our founding is more than just a landmark year. It’s a celebration of our part in reaching a generation of people with the power of God’s Word.

Discover more about Walk Thru the Bible at

WWW.WALKTHRU.ORG