The Apostle Paul took a bold, strong, uncompromising stand for the Lord Jesus and yet did so with a sweet and gracious spirit. In Acts 16, Timothy joined Paul and Silas on their missionary endeavor. He submitted to the rite of circumcision in order to be a good testimony to the Jews, to whom they would preach the Gospel.

Ministry—even good ministry—can be built on a shaky foundation. When Jesus gave the word picture of a house built on the sand or on a rock, He wasn’t only speaking to the Pharisees. He was speaking to you and me. Of course, His promise to those who build their lives on truth is also for you and me.

For the longest time, I thought faithfulness had died in our culture. I was so wrong. Faithfulness has not died; it has been misplaced. Every single person on this earth is faithful to something. The problem with our faithfulness is the object of our faithfulness.

The biggest influence you will have as a missionary is the preachers you have trained. There are countless illustrations we could use such as C.T. Studd and Bob Hughes. When they died, their ministry lived on because they had trained men of God.

When I believed God was burdening my heart to plant a church in my hometown, many people laughed or just shook their heads. You see, I am from Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1977, I planned to graduate on May 11, get married ten days later, and assist my pastor in building a recent successful church plant in Burlington, North Carolina. That year, however, God changed my direction towards planting a church in Las Vegas.

No one could have listened to John the Baptist’s preaching and left wondering what they were to do. John had a one-word message: Repent! John’s purpose was to prepare the way for Jesus’ ministry. Repentance—true, heart-plowing repentance—is the key to making room for the seed of God’s Word to take root.

Often in our ministry, we help people who are a mess. Their lives have been totally ensnared and virtually destroyed by sin and Satan. Helping these people overcome lifelong struggles with drugs, alcohol, immorality, pornography, and other issues is challenging and filled with discouragement. It is also wonderfully exciting as we see God bring victory into these sin-scarred lives.

In 1965, I boarded a plane to Japan with my wife Virginia, and our children, Renee and Tim. When we arrived, we were struck by the idolatry that was prevalent everywhere. Buddhist or Shinto altars were on every street corner. Idolatry permeated Japanese culture.

There’s not a committed Christian in America who wouldn’t like revival. But I’m afraid there are few who are desperate for revival. We stand in dire need of revival, but we don’t always carry a personal urgency for revival. Much of the book of Lamentations is the cry of a prophet who sensed the immediacy of his nation’s need for revival. Yet his cry was one of anguish because the people to whom he ministered were content to live without it.

Over the years, it has become a common practice among certain Christians to treat others as if they are wearing either black or white hats, like the main characters in the old cowboy shows. Some will remember that the ones with the white hats were “the good guys” and the ones wearing the black hats were “the bad guys.”