Measure of Ministry

"You don't measure yourself by your success. You measure yourself by the unfinished task." 

— Missionary Leader Loren Triplett

The Calling of a Servant

"All of us are called to be servants to one another, and to some degree, we

are. We should be. No matter what vocation we find ourselves in, we should

develop the characteristics of a servant. While most of us will accept the

ordinary invitations to serve one another, called servants stand in a class

by themselves. Whatever the occasion, they are ordinarily the first ones to

arrive and the last ones to leave, serving the entire time."

— Ron Marinari, "The Calling of a Servant," Pentecostal Evangel, March 10, 2013

The Secret of Success

“Dr. Wilber Chapman met General Booth [founder of the Salvation Army] and asked him what was the secret of his success. His reply is noteworthy. ‘I’ll tell you the secret,’ said he. ‘God has all there is of me. There have been many men with greater brains than I, and men with greater opportunities; but from the day I got the poor of London on my heart, and a vision of what Christ could do for them, I made up my mind that God should have all there was of William Booth. And if there is anything of power in my work it is because God has all the love of my heart, all the power of my will, and all the influence of my life.” — Pentecostal Evangel, May 21, 1927, p. 2
 

1921 Advice on Prayer for Preachers

What do you think? Is this advice still needed? “Prayer makes a heart preacher instead of a head preacher. Prayer puts the sermon in the preacher's heart; better still, prayer puts the preacher's heart in the sermon. The preachers who are mightiest in their closets with God are the mightiest in their pulpits with men. Prayer is the first thing, second thing, third thing, necessary for the ministry.” — Jan. 22, 1921, Pentecostal Evangel

Mistakes

"The best of men and the most earnest workers will make enough mistakes to make them humble. Thank God for mistakes and take courage. Don't give up on account of mistakes." —Dwight L. Moody

Leading Worship

"Leading worship can be a fragile act. Under the anointing, a worship leader draws the souls of the congregation towards the platform, and then in the twinkling of an eye, he turns them upward towards heaven to confront the face of God. If his timing is just slightly off, his own ego will be brushed with the affections and worship of the saints before it's fully directed upward.” — Ron Marinari, The Calling (2012), p. 49

Postponing Life

"While we are postponing, life speeds by." — Lucius Annaeus Seneca Though this quote is not from a believer, it certainly applies.

Facing Challenges

"I think about the challenges of getting across that wire, and the challenges people face every day — cancer or any other battle. Either way, the challenge is focusing on getting to the other end. So often we say, 'I don't understand this, God. This doesn't make sense.' That's when we need to remember what Scripture says, that we lean not on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5,6). It's about His ways, not our ways." —Nik Wallenda, in an interview by Ken Horn: "Witness on the Wire" Pentecostal Evangel, October 14, 2012

9/11 Memorial in Downtown Indianapolis

"Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America." —President George W. Bush September 11, 2001

Catch and Release

“It’s more important to catch souls than to build the size of your church. It’s about the catching, not the keeping. ‘Seek first the kingdom of God’ (Matthew 6:33) — not yours or your church’s.” “The Christian Angler’s Guide to Fishing,” Ken Horn, Pentecostal Evangel, August 12, 2012

Purpose of Communism

"If you ever wondered what the historic purpose of communism was, it was to build buildings large enough for Pentecostal congregations."

—Philip Jenkins, Anglican scholar, speaking at the recent Synergize3! interdenominational conference, discussing the fact that exploding churches in the old Soviet Union are using previous communist venues that were built for great rallies

Success and Opposition

"The work here is progressing gloriously, although the opposition is deep and bitter."

—The Apostolic Faith, Dec. 1906

The early Pentecostal revival in Salem, Oregon, demonstrates that success does not mean ease.

Risk

"Unless there is an element of risk in our exploits for God, there is no need for faith."
— Hudson Taylor

The Message Is What Matters

"Early on while still in Bible School I made a feeble, flimsy, fumbling attempt to preach to the lost at Victory Servicemen’s Center in Long Beach, California. I knew I had failed miserably … and it was true. But that night 30 sailor boys knelt and wept through to salvation. That night changed my life … for suddenly I realized that even when the messenger’s delivery is a total failure, the message itself remains powerful to save."

— Missionary Ralph Hiatt (on his blog, "Ralph Hiatt's Argentina," 10/29/11)

China

"If I had a thousand pounds China should have it—if I had a thousand lives, China should have them.
No! Not China, but Christ.
Can we do too much for Him?
Can we do enough for such a precious Saviour?"

Missionary Hudson Taylor, in a letter to his sister and brother-in-law

Crowd Is Not a Church

“There is no correlation between the size and the strength of a church. … A crowd is not a church.”

— Rick Warren, 8/4/11, General Council of the Assemblies of God, Phoenix, AZ

Little Things

"A little thing is a little thing, but faithfulness in little things is a great thing."

—James Hudson Taylor

No Generational Curse

"There is no such thing as a 'Generational Curse' to a child of God. We must stop blaming our failures on parentage and accept responsibility for our lives. 'Christ has redeemed me from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for me: that the blessings of Abraham might come upon the gentiles [that's me] through Jesus Christ: That we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.' (Gal. 3:13-14)"

—James Cossey

Standard for Success

"The standard for success is not great numbers or noticeable accomplishments but obedience. Our sense of accomplishment comes in fulfilling God’s will. If it is less glamorous or powerful, even ignominious, nevertheless it is there that true success lies."

— Ken Horn

Servanthood

"Servanthood: the true measure of a leader. Many fail the test. Those who fail the test do not deserve to be followed. Those who serve gain followers by virtue of their demonstrated Godly character."

—Ken Horn