Golden State Pastor's Blog

The Alter Call

I read a lot of Blogs and one of my favorites is always Perry Noble from NewSpring Church in Anderson, South Carolina. Perry is doing a remarkable job reaching his community for Christ. I really believe technology can serve the church and it's leaders in awesome ways. There is so much information and encouragement available us immediately.

Today's post were very good and very encouraging. He linked to Chris Elrod's Blog and a wonderful testimony of a man named Pete's salvation experience. Chris Elrod's words were simple...

This is Pete.

Pete has smoked since he was teenager.

Pete struggled most of his life with alcohol.

Pete used to shoot people when he’d get angry.

Pete spent 15 years behind bars.

Pete has cancer…a bunch of cancer.

Pete has been given only a few months to live.

Pete has a tattoo on his leg that says “Hell Bound”.

Pete won’t be going there.

Pete came to know Jesus two weeks ago.

Pete was baptized today.

Then Perry shared an email from Chris about what caused Pete to finally accept Christ.

Perry:

First of all…thank you for the link on your blog about  Pete…I’m having the single highest day of hits.  :-)

Secondly, I wanted to let you know that YOU played a HUGE part in Pete’s conversion.  You remember the phone call we had about altar calls and invitations during the service?  I took your advice…began to get a little more aggressive and frequent with them…and really trying to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.  Two weeks ago your words were running through my mind before the service…during the service I kept feeling the Holy Spirit leading me to speak more “confrontational” about sin.  I gave a time of “invitation”…Pete accepted…it was his first Sunday at Compass Point.  He told me later that many times he had felt that God was speaking to him…and that he needed to give his heart to Christ. The reason he had never done it before (in his 71 years)…is because no one had ever asked him to make that decision…or told him how to pray to do.  Had you not talked with me…I probably would have never thought about doing “altar calls”…and Pete would still probably be “Hell Bound”.  Thank you for your friendship…mentoring…and Godly example.

Finally, tell your staff that the impact of the ministry of Newspring reaches far beyond Anderson, South Carolina.  If you don’t believe me…just ask Pete!!!

Grace and  peace:

Chris Elrod

Who would have thought that someone might respond to of all things, an alter call? It's funny how things go out of style and then come back into style later. Everyone seemed to dismiss alter calls for years and now they seem to be the thing to do. I just thought this was an awesome story to share.

So Much Potential In California

I love California and I'm convinced it is one of the greatest mission fields open today! If a man wants to reach people for Christ California would be a great place to begin. There is no shortage of people here in California.

Vacaville is just one of many cities that is booming with POTENTIAL. Please pray for and about Northern California. I am asking God for a new church plant in this wonderful city. If you are an experienced pastor interested in working in Northern California I'd love to pray with you about this opportunity.

Matthew 9:35-38
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."

Charles Spurgeon ~ Still Relevant

“Many hearers lose much blessing through criticizing too much, and meditating too little; and many more incur great sin by calumniating those who live for the good of others. True pastors have enough of care and travail without being burdened by undeserved and useless fault-finding. We have something better to do than to be for ever answering every malignant or frivolous slander which is set afloat to injure us….there are tender, loving spirits who feel the trial very keenly, and are sadly hindered in brave service by cruel assaults. The rougher and stronger among us laugh at those who ridicule us, but upon others the effect is very sorrowful…

As ministers we are very far from being perfect, but many of us are doing our best, and we are grieved that the minds of our people should be more directed to our personal imperfections than to our divine message….

Filled with the same spirit of contrariety, the men of this world still depreciate the ministers whom God sends them and profess that they would gladly listen if different preachers could be found. Nothing can please them, their cavils are dealt out with heedless universality. Cephas is too blunt, Apollos is too flowery, Paul is too argumentative, Timothy is too young, James is too severe, John is too gentle…

Well then, let each servant of God tell his message in his own way. To his own Master he shall stand or fall…

Judge the preacher if you like, but do remember that there is something better to be done than that, namely, to get all the good you can out of him, and pray his Master to put more good into him.”

- from Eccentric Preachers by C.H. Spurgeon

California Christian College (Bay Area Extension)

I'm very excited to announce that California Christian College will begin holding extension classes here in the San Francisco Bay Area very soon. Please contact CCC for questions and information concerning these extension classes. Download CCCLearningCenter.PDF