God Orchestrates and Recruits

Welcome back to this episode of Ignite. I have the famous the one and only Jack Hitch, my father in California and my dear friend and you know if you have a if you have a church it's not igniting you and getting you involved. It's tickling your ears with three-point make you feel good messages you go out laughing and whatever. That's not real life. This is this is the world. I mean there's a different world today and if your past year is not healthy understand that and what you should be doing today you need somebody like Jack Hitch. He's not only my dear friend but he's my pastor because you know I've sat in a great preaching all my life. I've never had an exhortor in my life that speaks the truth fearlessly. I mean you know I mean and you have fun doing it but you're just free and just having fun and you turn the whole world of evil and darkness and everything into a this amazing opportunity we have. Well I think that's really clear from the gospel you see first of all our prototype our leader and that is Jesus walking through a sinful world right came into a sinful world walked right through it he avoided nothing walked right through it and while he was walking through it illuminated every spot that he passed through and you think about that he not only raised the dead you know that's a fantastic part everybody wants to see the miraculous part but Jesus said because I go to the Father the works that I've done you're gonna do greater works and a lot of people fail to recognize that as important as it is you know to pray for the sick of course we will do that and to pray for those to be raised up of course we will do that but Jesus made it very clear that the greatest work that we can do is what Barry McGuire is so skilled at doing and frankly every Christian should be and that is in their opportunity in their moment that God provides is to share the Lord Jesus Christ in that arena not one of us can say well if I had your platform Barry I would tell people know the truth is because Barry tells people about Jesus God's giving him a platform you want to make sure you haven't the right order exactly I had a guy come to the dinner last night we had we had 120 people from dinner last night few friends over for dinner here Jack and this one guy came up to me and he's a powerful salesman I mean and mega millions I mean he was just he says Barry you have the personality hmm see not everybody has that personality I said whoa you do not know me I was an introvert I was an introvert I was folks I hid behind my wife Karen's never known stranger I would literally walk behind her and when she warmed up the group I would appear an interim to the conversation that's how wow sharing my faith took me out of that because I will feel so compelled I needed there you go to do that you know and that's key but but then you recognize that he is a golden the world all you have a certain type of personality or going to the world you have been trained going to the world all you have had memorized scripture you know go in the world and you know there's no point it's just go that's right and notice he doesn't say go and pray that's right he doesn't say go and read your Bible he says go and tell that's for all of us yeah there's none of us they get out exactly right there's key things in scripture that let's just call them the fundamentals that that are in place okay so what's to always be in place is that you are a person of prayer so you pray you just what does that mean that means that you have an open door open link constant upload download of conversation with God we make it so difficult that we rule ourselves right out of the factor that's wrong the other thing is is to be ingesting the Bible and so this is why we as a church are so committed to verse by verse Bible teaching why there's a reason for this very is if people get the word in them that's that's all I need to do is be faithful to the word of God if I give it it's going to get inside of them and then once it's inside of them I walk away because he goes to work he takes the word and to coin a perfect phrase he ignites the word in them so like Jeremiah Jeremiah said I tried to keep my mouth shut but I couldn't do it God's word burned within me and I had to sleep and we really believe that strongly we've seen that in our own lives personally and we've seen it happen at church and that is those who are open to the word take it in and it begins to simmer eventually that lid on that pot begins to boil over and when that boiling over takes place you're gonna have a tug on your heart at the grocery store tell that person about my love or tell that stranger can you pray for them we call it a nudge a nudge and you know what the nudge is how often you say oh I should I should stop but I don't have I don't have time you all that person's hurting at home I I should really call it I don't know why I'm gonna say you know you don't have to know what you're gonna say right forget all that stuff about memorization and preparation if I Bible says don't do that don't even prepare Luke 12 chose I'll give you the words the Holy Spirit give you the word to say when you need them and when you have that happen that's intimacy with God yeah I don't think you can have any other ways God just use me to minister that person he used I pedal car wax he just used me to change the life I mean doesn't get any better than that my gracious we for years we have been personally in international mission stations where churches were being planted preaching on the streets bury one of the greatest highlights of my life was right after remember when Reagan said mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall and you remember Bill Bright Bill Bright picked up the phone and he called Chuck Smith at Calvary Chapel Coast Mace and he said look I've been to Russia and formal Christianity's not gonna work among the young people it's just not gonna work they're they're not interested in in the formalities to the the future of Russia the hope is reaching the young people so Calvary Chapel you guys go to church in flip flops and and your casual Chuck how soon can you get churches into Russia and within a matter of months we were not only in Russia but I'll never forget it one of my first times ever there maybe it is the very next day I stood on top of a Newtson a Newtson plastic milk cart with the crowd of people that came with us and preach the gospel in front of Lenin's tomb literally behind me was Lenin Lane dead that the entire Soviet empire was built upon the ideology of that that basically he preached God is dead on God basically and so we preach the gospel and what happened was our group myself included Lisa my wife we literally forgot who we were we we were working 10 12-hour day sharing Christ you forget everything about your life you forget your name so to speak right you forget that you've got kids back home you are so consumed in what God wants to be doing that if somebody now I mean this in a joking way but maybe not we were so pumped high on sharing Jesus that if somebody would have walked by from the world and said hey you want some you want some drugs you want some drink you want a high we would have laughed we would have left are you kidding get out of my face you have no idea what you're talking about because what we've been doing sharing Christ is so it's so possessing it possesses you it really is you know this thing of praying without ceasing I I can remember you know I've been at this for a few years right get on me married about to be very 59 years we've been sharing our faith together all these years but I remember back in the early years or I'm married saying pray without ceasing yeah I can hardly remember to pray every day in fact sometimes I'll go a week without praying yeah yeah that there's is that's impossible yeah you know a few months ago hit me I'm praying without ceasing all the time and this is why what happens folks I walk into room I've been doing this for a long time I just didn't realize that's actually what I'm doing when I walk in a room now I'm I'm not I'm not warped I'm not a Jesus freak where it's like get away from the guy I can't stand that guy I mean I you know I love to eat with a sports we have all these patients you know we have all these fun things but always be ready always be ready and when I walk into room I am I'm I'm literally praying God who do you want me to talk to who do you want me to talk to that's where and sometimes I'll see somebody across the room and I think that okay God if that's who you want me to talk to you I know you work at a house and and also I mean all sudden they I turn around and there they are hey I've been wanting to talk to you about something it's like okay God and look at the boldness that gives you see a lot of people listen in fact if tell you what we'd love to encourage all of you about is to actually pray that prayer Lord good morning God I know you're gonna want to do stuff today if you want to use me I'm ready and because I'm not the smartest Einstein spiritually speaking I need your nudge so when you nudge me let me know it and so I want that divine appointment so I'm gonna respond to it and respond to it I just know it but respond to it exactly when you pull back no it's oh it's nothing got down listen it's not well I think I think what's worse than letting God down believe it or not because I don't think God I don't I don't think we can ever disappoint God I think he already knows how how messed up we are I think we wind up ripping ourselves off because he sets up a divine appointment he gives you the nudge yeah and like you said oh should I look the moment you find yourself debating yourself should I go tell that person about God or should I go pray with that person or or should I do this that or other in Jesus name at the guy at the end of the freeway off ramp whatever his motive is just do it in Jesus name if you find yourself debating should I do should I do good or not do good do the good don't debate it do the good thing and let God deal with the outcome oh my oh my oh my and and I wonder how many times I miss it oh me too because God not only orchestrates our lives he orchestrates their lives he he brings us together I got a million stories of total the podcast I won't waste our time now but it's amazing how you bring us together and I wonder how we can try miss it yeah and I'm looking through God's eyes and I think he's looking to go on okay you know how hard I worked to put you together and you just blew me off very and that's why I'm so excited when it works yeah and I feel God smiling I look up I see Jesus smiling say you did it very you heard me I used I spoke to you did it well done and the joy the Lord is my strength but I think I just made God happy yeah you know what Barry this question and comment comes out of my bubber reading this morning I was reading Rebecca last night in the gathering mentioned Psalm 90 so I started reading today Psalm 90 91 92 and then it dawned on me this morning where a man might be listening to us right now and say well my wife's the evangelist or my wife's more open oh yeah my wife prays my wife this my wife that hey you know what we need to stop even thinking like that and realize this that we need to be men of biblical masculinity okay not the way the world defines masculinity the way God does it and there's no greater example outside of Jesus in my opinion then then King David David was obviously a man's man a man of war in fact so much war that God said you're so your hands have been so bloody and battle that you can't build me a house your son will do it he's got more of a softer touch but David was a man of war he was a man of God a man of prayer and here I'm reading in these Psalms how he is praying Lord make my heart sensitive to what you want to do and what you're saying and this is a man speaking so we can't any longer especially as pastors we cannot hide behind some facade and maybe what pop out on Sunday and then then go back in and wait till next Sunday no no no no I think we're living in an age that the good stuff we need to focus on and there's good stuff happening like the young generation today they can see right through falsehood no matter what they're into yeah they love authenticity yes they do yes and so we need to respond to that and capitalize on it isn't there's nobody more authentic than Jesus and so if we were to show a world that is what's what's the deal fearful suicidal panic stricken absolutely not knowing what to do next if a man shows up in their world that is saying hey you know what let's go do this let's go do this and see what happens they might wind up having a completely different perspective and say you know what you mean I can let I can live Bible life for real yeah they've never seen it they don't even know it exists exactly even known exists exactly 80% of Americans are unchurched living fear and they're looking statistics they they're looking for God yeah they know this is not natural what's going on they're looking we've been sharing care and I've been share a phase for 50 years on a daily basis it's never been easier now it's a thousand percent every single person is open you just can't tell them they're going to hell do you know you're going to help do where do you go to church or you do are you say I mean you can't be doing this love them he says no no you're mind-cycle by your love you just love on people and they never get mad at you when you tell them do you know God loves you yep a lot of times overjected I can't no I can't let yeah I love you no I got a taxi one time and a guy in Detroit and I said I'm gonna take a short it's cold outside seven degrees but I give me a big I don't want a tip what I don't want a tip yelled at me just shortman scruffy beard one of the few non-Muslim taxi drivers in Detroit that's rare that's exactly rare and I said excuse me why don't you want to I'm a bad person oh my goodness I don't want a tip he's yelling at me so every time every time anything goes wrong Karen I'd say God what do you have to you're up to something you you can use us you we got a million stories and this time I said do you know God loves you I've been doing this a lot since the first time do you know God loves you no right I said no no God loves you no I said sir I'm excuse me but I'm a student at the Bible Christian and I can tell you God loves you dead silence I mean he'd never heard that I said you know it gets even better do you know he loves you as much as has ever loved anybody ever yeah I say you know it gets even better than that it gets even better do you know he loves you as much as he loves his own son Jesus Christ not a word not a word sinking in by now we're at the convention center I get out of snowing puts the window down the salt in the winter he's looking at me I said sir God I just want you know God put me in your taxi right now that's right because he wants you know that he loves you and he wants you to spend eternity with him he just he just you know and then I give a big tip I said have a great day God bless you here sorry you know so I said it's a team sport I didn't get him saved I might find it I might have started committing suicide he might be a preacher day I don't know exactly but I know God used me we have these moments when bad things happen you have the flat tire you have the flight that doesn't work you're on the wrong fly whatever it is look around you're in the middle of God doing something when you recognize it changes your entire life and where you live and it's always true it's not just a mindset it actually happens well and here this is Barry's podcast but I want to I want to rat him out so to speak in love he practices what he preaches because I remember some time ago you picking me up at the airports and we we stopped at some some place for you and Karen had taken us to to lunch somewhere and they have a routine for real so he's not just talk where when the hostess came or when the server came they have something that they practice and it's and it's basically this high Karen or Rachel or whatever her name was we were we were praying people is there something that we can pray for you for and I'll never forget standing there I remember this she said that her dad was pastoring a very small church that was struggling and that she had just gotten married and they were trying to figure that out yeah that's right I remember this because of that moment and this was some time ago Barry and Karen both they do what they're telling you on this on this program and I've watched it and I see it it's awesome we do it a lot the stories you know most the time they're not only have something that they want you to pray about but they'll be emotional about it and after you say thank God we asked her what if we had not asked her that question my gracious say exactly right is it fun serving the Lord or what I've often said that if Christianity's boring you're doing it wrong passers that are not encouraging their flock their people to share the faith are robbing their people of joy a faith you know most Christians are living in fear now they don't have they don't have if you're living in fear you don't have faith if you don't have faith you can't share your faith so you just go through the motion getting beat up by this word one new word God is supposed to getting off the bench you know you send the bench and complain never played you're just a bench set right yeah and you start complaining about your own players yeah for free people who complained about the results of the election but they didn't vote exactly right exactly right from past to our standpoint why are pastors not sending us I can't go to your church and one here I go to a time of our net look on it's chapter their zone I love the Barney family and they're continuing to say share your faith but why are most pastors not doing that why are they not empowering us so why do they that help us it's a great submission after I don't know but if were they were they happen to did that were they schooled in a seminary that didn't focus on evangelism it's possible but I don't like to give them that out because if you just read your Bible I personally believe this Jesus said in John 16 it's important that I go away because if I don't go away the Holy Spirit will not come okay but if he comes he says in John 14 he's gonna dwell with you he's gonna be inside of you and in John 7 he announces that for the believer from your innermost being will gush forth rivers of living water so when you put those things together John 7 John 14 John 16 and then he wraps it and puts a bow on top with with Acts chapter 1 verse 8 go into all the world and preach this gospel and make disciples so here's a deal evangelism preaching the gospel is only one end of what we do as pastors at least it should be our jobs as the Bible says Ephesians 4 we are pastor teachers which means we not only see people born that's what the evangelist or evangelism brings forth but after somebody saved we are to equip them to do the work of the ministry who every believer so what you want to do is ask yourself do you go to a church that goes beyond the salvation effort salvation effort should be happening everywhere but now what so somebody said a long time ago are you have you been a Christian for 40 years with 40 years experience or have you been a Christian for 40 years with one year experience and and that's what we see in America today because pastors have either shied away or they view evangelism as confrontational that they're really speaking to what is known as felt needs pastor tell me what kind of happy thought should I have today or this week and I'll see you next week to get refueled but don't call me to get involved in the culture don't tell me to share my faith with somebody and Barry I'm telling you that if pastors got away from sermons as Charles Spurgeon called them he said that too many people are preaching sermons for Christian and we need to get into the word of God so that it gets into our DNA and out it comes do you have more time we're running out of time can we do another episode of this I'm yours close out right now I want to come back and do it because some other questions you're right on a very important time hey folks join us again for next episode thanks for joining us here on a night this episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash progressive makes 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