The Blessed Life
It's a captivating story about a young evangelist who was eager to go anywhere to preach the Gospel. As he stopped to get some gas he was startled when the woman in the counter informed him that the gas had been payed for. Apparently the Holy Spirit had spoken to the woman that he was an evangelist and that God had wanted her to pay for his gas. He was pleasantly blessed.
When he finally got to the church to preach he was given the largest offering he had ever received at one time. But the story does not end there, God spoke to him and told him to give the entire offering to a visiting missionary who was there at the church. Reluctantly he obeyed God but proceeded to endorse the check and give it to the missionary.
At dinner after service an elderly gentleman asked him about the offering. It was an awkward moment but the man was relentless, to the point that he wanted to know where the check was. He reluctantly lied by telling him it was in the car so as not to reveal he had given the check away. It was then that the man said, "The check's not in the car." Surprised he asked him, "How did you know that? "Because God told me."
What the man said next was even more shocking, God told the man to tell him that "God is about to teach you about giving so that you can teach the Body of Christ." After which he handed him a check that was 10 times the amount of the earlier offering. This would be the beginning of the life journey of Robert Morris, Senior Pastor Gateway Church and author of the book, The Blessed Life. Gateway Church is located at Southlake, just outside of Dallas-Fortworth.
A journey of radical generosity and giving. The re-telling of this story reminds us that as we go through this week, our lives as children of God involve a life of radical giving and generosity. God in His very nature is a giver that He gave us His very own Son.
I have read The Blessed Life, actually twice. That's how good it is. But after visiting with Pastor Robert and his team at Gateway, I am urged to read it yet another time. Much of what I read was demonstrated. Marie and I were hosted by the church in ways that was just over the top.
They have piled heaps of books, materials, food, lodging and genuine love to us. More than teaching us the blessed life they demonstrated it.
Thanks Pastor Robert and Debbie we have indeed been blessed by your lives.
My Comments Policy
While my site offers visitors the ability to converse, I have a few ground rules so that our conversations will remain civil and courteous.
1. You must register in order to leave a comment. I don’t entertain pseudo, anonymous or bogus individuals. This site is my home (it has a Home Page, get it). I don’t let strangers who don’t introduce themselves into my home.
2. I love questions. I love them because a lot of times they are similar to someone else’s questions and can even trigger other questions from others. Questions also keep us all sharp. This is also why I respond to them as best as I can and at the soonest possible time. I believe that group answering benefits more people than private email exchanges.
3. We don’t have to agree. Debates are welcome. However, whether it is with me or any other visitors of my site, my rule is this: disagree if you must but keep things civil. That’s just how I run my home, and you are a visitor here. No shouting; I have seen it done in writing. No cursing and no insulting.
4. I reserve the right to delete your comments. Like I said, this is my home. I do not have an obligation to publish your comments. As a human being, you may enjoy the freedom to express your opinions on your own site but not on mine. To be specific, I will delete your comments if you post content that is in my sole opinion: (a) snarky; (b) off-topic; (c) libelous, defamatory, abusive, harassing, threatening, profane, pornographic, offensive, false, misleading, or which otherwise violates or encourages others to violate my sense of decorum, civility or any law, including intellectual property laws; or (d) “spam,” i.e. an attempt to advertise, solicit, or otherwise promote goods and services. You may, however, post a link to your site or your most recent blog entry.
5. You retain ownership of your comments. I do not own them and I expressly disclaim any and all liability that may result from them. By commenting on my site, you agree that you retain all ownership rights in what you post here and that you will relieve me from any and all liability that may result from those posts.
6. You grant me the license to post your comments. This license is worldwide, irrevocable, non-exclusive, and royalty-free. By posting comments on my site, you automatically grant me the right to store, use, transmit, display, publish, reproduce, and distribute your comments in any format, including but not limited to a blog, in a book, video, or presentation.
In short, my goal is to host interesting conversations with caring, honest, and respectful people. I believe this clear and simple comments policy will facilitate this.
