Momentum 4_Rev B_Low Res - Gateway Ministries International

MOMENTUM
ENCOURAGING TO WORSHIP | WALK | WITNESS
FAMILY
MEDIA
November 2013 | Issue 4
EDUCATION
DUCAT
RELIGION
BUSINESS
GOVERNMENT
Issue Focus:
Seven Mountain
Mandate
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
November 2013
| contents
4
cover story
7 Mountain mandate - Way forward
by Jaya Abraham
Momentum is published in India by
the Gateway Ministries family of
churches, for circulation among
members.
Subscription free.
3
Editorial | Mohan Varqhese
6
Influencing the family mountain | Stanley Mehta
Chief Editor
Mohan Varghese
9
Artists as restorers | Mark Raja
Editorial Team
Stanley Mehta
David Selvan
Editorial Consultants
Anand Mahadevan
Shobha Sreekumaran
Design & Production
Sarangan Ramaswamy
Published by
Gateway Ministries International
B 215, 2nd floor (Deck Level),
Belapur Railway Station Complex
Tower no. 10, CBD, Navi Mumbai400 614 Maharashtra, India
Telephone: +91- 2222150654 /
22189036
Email: [email protected]
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture
references are taken from the New
International Version of the Bible.
Articles featured in Momentum
reflect the opinion of the authors
and not necessarily those of
Momentum or GMI family of
churches - Editor
11 Happenings & Events
13 The Media mountain | Mobis Philipose
15 The Mountain of education | Glenn Croning
19 Reclaiming the Seven Mountains | Os Hillman
21 Q & A on the Seven Mountains | Anand Mahadevan
23 Reader’s Views
24 GMI Vision
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13
November 2013
“
| editorial
The Kingdom of God is a tangible quality of life –
a state of righteousness, peace and joy in the
Holy Ghost.
The Church of Jesus Christ has a
missional call which has often been
understood as a command to ‘go and
make disciples’ of unreached peoples.
The Great Commission however, has
within it, a call to disciple nations and
bring transformation into every sphere of
life by being “Salt & Light”. This issue of
Momentum will look at how the church
can impact these spheres with the
message of the kingdom of God.
The 7 Mountain teaching states that
there are seven “spheres of influence” or
seven “mind moulders” of culture that
must be influenced by the Word of God
before a society can be transformed. All
spheres of life are under the sovereign
rulership of God. The seven spheres
are: family, business, religion, arts &
entertainment, media, education, and
government. .
Jesus and Satan met at the top of a
mountain and he (Satan) offered Christ
the kingdoms of the world (7
Mountains). Whoever controls the
kingdoms rules the world. Jesus took
authority and spoke the Word. We can
now bring the Kingdom of God to earth
(Matt 4).
The Church has, for the most part,
abandoned six of the seven mountains
In Africa for example, we have the worst
reported poverty, the worst epidemics
and the worst combined economy of
”
any continent on earth, despite
evangelisation. This is because of the
lack of righteous leadership to impact
the other six mountains with the values
of God’s kingdom.
Joseph and Daniel did not impact Egypt
and Babylon by convincing people to
become Hebrews. They spoke the
heavenly Kingdom into the lives of
heathen kings and their kingdoms which
shaped the future of those nations
The Kingdom of God is a tangible
quality of life – a state of righteousness,
peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Before
you try changing culture on the outside,
be sure to carry the culture of the
Kingdom on the inside.
Isaiah 2:2 states “Now it shall come to
pass in the latter days that the mountain
of the LORD’s house shall be
established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and
all nations shall flow to it”.
As you read this issue and ponder over
all that is written, it will be good to ask
yourself which sphere or mountain God
is asking you to influence and impact.
We hope this issue will stir you to
action . As always we will value your
comments and suggestions.
Mohan Varghese pastors the Grace Tabernacle Ministries
and oversees their churches. He is married to Sareeta and have
three sons Adarsh, Ashok and Alex, the eldest is married to
Tiqvah-El and they have a daughter Mireya.
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November 2013
| cover story
The 7 Mountain Mandate Way forward
by Jaya Abraham
Introduction:
About the author:
Jaya Abraham is a VP of a
leading Indian firm & head of
CSR of that company. She is a
trustee of several leading
Christian Boards in India and is
a sought after speaker all over
India, She carries a great burden
for market place ministries. She
is married to Abraham and is
part of the GMI church in
Bandra.
The historic moment first took place
in 1975- when Loren Cunningham,
the founder of Youth With A Mission
met with another pioneer – Bill Bright
of Campus Crusade - two leaders
who had divine revelation of the
Great Commission. These two great
men explained the 7 SPHERES of
influence that required to be
penetrated by the generation to
follow. Cunningham defined them as
“mind molders” and Bill Bright
described them as “world kingdoms”.
In Revelation 5: 1-12, we get a
glimpse of an amazing moment
taking place in heaven. The One
worthy to open the scroll is the One
who was slain for us! He is described
as having “seven horns” and that
describes to us the 7 foundations of
power that the Lamb has because of
His act of redemption on the cross. In
Matthew 28:18, we read “all authority
has been given to Me in heaven and
on earth.” These 7 culture-shaping
areas are Family, Education, Media,
Business, Government, Arts &
Entertainment and Religion. These 7
culture-shaping areas are the key to
advancing the kingdom of God in the
nations.
Every one of us born of the Spirit
needs to believe that this calling is a
“God-assigned mission!” Caleb at
eighty-five, knew the mountain he
was to occupy and influence. It is in
the heart of the Father, that each
person reading this piece will be able
to do the same. We need fast
trackers that would take this
mandate to the next level. How do I
know, “What is my mountain?”
Michael Maiden in Turn the World
Upside Down, writes, “the mountain
of influence which you are called to,
is the place where you will find the
job you love, financial success,
people you enjoy being with, and the
ultimate personal fulfillment. It is your
‘sweet spot,’ were you perfectly fit.
Not only is it God’s place where you
can most effectively bring to bear His
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presence and power to affect an
area of your culture, but it is also
your place.” In Acts 17:6, it is said
of Paul & Silas that they “…turned
the world upside down.” And would
that be said of us?
Reclaiming the Family Mountain:
This mountain is where we target
social structures and bring the
kingdom of God to them. There is
much room in this mountain to
create new institutions that will be
catalysts in healing marriages,
families and individuals. These
would be ministries away from the
pulpit but that is where the harvest
field exists. Some ideas:
Babysitting services, Daycare
centers, Counseling booths,
Adoptions, Fostering children,
Legal services. The “eyes of the
Lord “will be upon you as you
engage in this mountain.
Reclaiming the Mountain of
Education:
God has placed the first
responsibility on the family and then
on the church on how our children
are to be educated. Proverbs 22:6
(AMP): (You) train up a child in the
way he should go (and in keeping
with his individual gift or bent), and
when he is old he will not depart
from it. Teachers, who are Holy
Spirit- empowered, are the ones
who will break the lies of the enemy
that attacks this mountain. So a
three- level strategy at the student,
faculty and curriculum level, needs
to be employed. This strategy will
offer a kingdom template that does
acknowledge God.
Reclaiming the Media Mountain:
One of the greatest influencers of
society is media. The weapons of
our warfare are not carnal but
mighty in God, to the pulling down
of strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4).
The ones with anointing to do
redemptive reporting will have
doors of opportunities open.!The
new I- Y generation will be a big
blessing with their creativity.
Prophecy and dream interpretation
through social media will become a
directional tool to the lost
generation. Praying for this
mountain is going to be a powerful
way of tipping to overflow, so as to
influence and impact.
Reclaiming the Business Mountain:
Work is a calling. God’s assignment
is to take this mountain for His
Kingdom. In order to walk with His
favor in this mountain, you and I
have to spread Godly influence, be
Christ-like in our demeanor, and
steward His wealth. We have to
look beyond our primary passion of
just making money. We would have
to visualize community reach and
development. The triple bottom line
will be to be largely “people
focused”.
Reclaiming the Government
Mountain:
True Apostles will take over this
mountain in a unique way. These
men and women will be the ones
with profound intimacy with God.
These men and women will step
into these high places into their
God chosen role. Prayer strategy is
the way forward to reclaim this
mountain mandate. We need Laws
that prohibit illegal activity and
focus on governance by servant
leaders that will lead to change of
hearts and minds of the people.
This will give us victory over issues
that we battle with currently.
Envisioning establishing kingdom
attitudes along with practical
kingdom culture among us is a
priority. Johnny Enlow writes, “faith
gets you into heaven, while works
bring heaven on earth.”
Reclaiming the Mountain of Arts:
“Behold, the former things have
come to pass, and new things I
declare…Sing to the Lord a new
song, and His praise from the ends
of the earth” Isaiah 42:9-10. God is
doing a new thing in this mountain
and He will make it known to His
very own before it takes place. God
will cause love to triumph over
every sector in this mountain. The
world is looking for authenticityprophetic men and women will
reveal the kingdom by showcasing
God in unique ways.
Lastly, the over focused Mountain
of Religion – Church:
The 7 Mountain mandate awakens
us to the fact that the Great
Commission is not just about
making disciples but it is about
discipling nations. Even when we
don't see it, God wants us to
prepare for the harvest that is
plentiful. Isaiah 2:2 “Now it shall
come to pass in the latter days that
the mountain of the Lord’s house
shall be established on the top of
the mountains, and shall be exalted
above the hills; and all the nations
shall flow to it”. In fact, true
disciples will grasp the fact of God’s
working in the rest of the six
molders of society. The rest of the
six mountains will flow from this one
as the Lord is exalted and His
house is established.
Conclusion:
Malcolm Gladwell defines ‘The
tipping point’ as that magical
moment when an idea, trend or
social behavior crosses a threshold,
tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just
3-5% of the population in each of
these mountains moving in the
same direction will create a tipping
point. A minority occupying the
high places is stronger than a
majority that is irrelevant. Would
you and I be the ones who will hold
close to our heart His scripted
Word, as we get ready to see how
He leads us on to be the ‘tipping
point’. “Look among the nations
and watch – be utterly astounded!
For I will work a work in your days
which you would not believe,
though it were told you” - Habakkuk
1:5.
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November 2013
| column
Influencing the family
mountain
by Stanley Mehta
The promise of the new Elijah:
The book of Malachi ends with this
verse “See, I will send the prophet
Elijah to you before that great and
dreadful day of the LORD comes. He
will turn the hearts of the parents to
their children, and the hearts of the
children to their parents; or else I will
come and strike the land with total
destruction.” (Malachi 4:6)
About the author:
Stanley Mehta is the overseer of
Gateway Ministries International. He
loves training and conducting
seminars on family, parenting and
finance. He is married to Esme, and
they have 2 daughters who are
married and a son who is 22 years
old. They also have two grandchildren.
We know that John the Baptist came
in the Spirit of Elijah as the fore
runner before the first coming of our
Lord Jesus, to prepare the hearts of
the people. John the Baptist, turned
the hearts of people to their Lord and
Master and many responded by
going through the waters of baptism.
But now before the second coming
of our Lord, there is another
corporate Elijah (called the church)
that will rise to be the forerunner to
do a similar job of turning the hearts
of fathers to their children as well as
turning the hearts of children to their
parents.
The problem:
We see today the fulfillment of what
was prophesied in 2 Timothy 3:1-5
“But mark this: there will be terrible
times in the last days. People will be
lovers of themselves, lovers of
money, boastful, proud, abusive,
disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful, unholy, without love,
unforgiving, slanderous, without selfcontrol, brutal, not lovers of the
good, treacherous, rash, conceited,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers
of God – having a form of godliness
but denying its power”. We have young people in their early
20s earning a starting salary of what
their parents retired with in their 60s,
wanting a lavish lifestyle, creating a
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huge appetite for gadgets and
amenities. Some of them have
become lovers of money, lovers of
themselves, boastful, proud,
abusive, disobedient to their parent,
etc.
Today we have broken marriages,
rise in divorce, couples living
together without getting married,
dysfunctional homes, teenage
pregnancies, abortion, child sexual
abuse and homosexuals fighting for
acceptance and their rights. The
celebrities like the film stars and
sports stars have been divorced
several times and remarried again
and again.
The solution: The wonderful
opportunity
In such a scenario, the Church as a
“corporate Elijah” has a significant
role to play to reclaim that which is
lost. It is a glorious opportunity to
‘love your neighbour’ because we
are surrounded by these hurting
neighbours all the time.
First of all the folks in our churches
need to hear and embrace the
Biblical message of “Husbands love
your wives, as Christ loved the
Church.” And wives respect your
husbands…” fathers do not
exasperate your children …. And
It is a glorious opportunity to ‘love your
neighbour’ because we are surrounded
by these hurting neighbours all the time.
The Bible mentions the worship of
god Molech, a metal statue heated
until it was red hot, and then the
devotees sacrificed their children by
putting their babies in the arms of
this red hot god. We could squirm
and be repulsed at the thought of
it, but today we are no different. In
the abortion clinic, that is what the
abortionist does. He inserts surgical
scissors through the cervix of the
women and cuts the baby to
pieces and sucks the dismembered
parts of the baby with a suction
pump. Or inject a salt solution in
the womb causing the baby to be
burnt alive. One can see the baby
in the throes of death as the
sonograph shows it clearly. Today
the mother’s womb has become a
baby’s tomb. It used to be the
safest place for babies.
children obey your parents in the
Lord.” As the church members
embody this message they will be
the best model to this broken
world. Then there is scope to carry
this message to the world outside
the church.
One of the several possibilities is to
discourage women from aborting
babies, and instead encourage
them to give their babies for
adoption. This message has been
received well within GMI circles, so
much so that today there are about
40 families who have adopted
babies in addition to having kids
which are born to them. And
several other parents have
registered themselves and waiting
for their turn to be able to adopt
babies. May their tribe increase.
Another alternative is to run
‘Children’s homes”. In an
orphanage we may have one house
parent looking after 50 kids. In such
a scenario the kids will still feel like
orphans. But in a children’s home
with a ratio of one house parent to
10 kids would make it more like a
home where they can get actual
parental love. Various social
networks under GMI are actually
running such homes, Mahima
Children’s Home and Anandalay
being two of them.
The movies and even soap operas
on TV portray affairs, double dating,
live-in relationship, obscene jokes,
and lewd language, all in the name
of comedy. All this causes the value
system in the community to be
eroded. Listen to the conversations
while travelling in a train, or the
language at a college canteen. Or
listen to the language during a road
rage. It is putrid. So to counteract
this, we need to promote &
recommend films which have godly
values like faithfulness, courage,
sacrifice, loyalty, and commitment
(see some titles of recommended
movies below).
Also there is a scope to conduct
marriage seminars and parenting
seminars in housing colonies, in
churches across denominations, in
corporate circles (after all, the
business executive is nothing but a
spouse and a parent). The
message is well received even
among the police force and armed
forces; as such seminars are well
attended by them. We should train
more workers so that the message
could go far and wide. The matter
needs to be translated into several
Indian languages so that it
penetrates the whole community.
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Other ways to minister would be to
single parents, divorcees, widows
and senior citizens. Perhaps a
session in each church every
quarter would help to understand
and minster to their need. Every
church has a significant number of
eligible single unmarried women of
high calibre who have been unable
to find a suitable spouse. They are
hurting and deeply disappointed.
Churches will do well to help them
find their areas of gifting where they
could use their talents whereby feel
fulfilled, and make them useful
rather than redundant.
No weddings should be conducted
unless the prospective bride and
groom have gone through a premarital training course for which
excellent courses are available (see
recommended list below).
The church in its current state has
no awareness or ability of how to
handle homosexuals, bisexuals,
transgender, other than be repulsed
by it. But these folks have faced
tremendous rejection right from
their childhood and are now
protesting for laws which will force
others to accept their status. But a
loving church, which accepts and
loves them as individual people (but
We have had innumerable opportunities to conduct
Parenting, Marriage and Personal Finance Seminars in
schools, to a few corporate sectors and housing
colonies and have also been able to conduct the same
abroad.
Sometimes I wonder who on earth would have
imagined that we would be doing this, or why would
God chose us? It moves me to tears as I think of
God’s unfailing love. It is only His grace that enables
anyone available to undertake any task, great or small,
with just one focus: to love God and love people.
In all, we may have conducted more than 100
seminars, and would have reached out to more than
about 1000 people. The most exciting bit is in being
able to take it to the un-churched, and have reached
out to more than 600 un-churched people through
these seminars. The feedback received has been very
encouraging. Some parents have even come forward
for personal counselling, and some of them want more
such seminars. The bridge is definitely being built to
reach people outside the fold.
Vasant and Praneeta of Grace Tabernacle Church,
Vizag (under Mohan Varghese), have conducted more
than 150 Parenting and Marriage Seminars in Telugu in
Andhra Pradesh. They also had the opportunity to get
a slot in the TV channel to conduct the same. The
not their sinful choice), will help in
their healing process and lead to
their restoration.
Using the media to bring greater
awareness, and publishing a
magazine for the family will be
another tool in the right direction
(see the recommended resource
below).
Even as statistics released by the
media is predicting a collapse of
the Indian family by the year 2025,
we can reverse the trend, if the
corporate Elijah (the church) rises to
the occasion. The enemy can be
vanquished. Let the church arise.
organization called “World Vision” has opened the
doors for them to penetrate all the communities where
they are involved. Shoba Sreekumaran and Shiny
Abraham were able to conduct and facilitate these
seminars among the Police Force and Corporate
sectors. Rajesh Matthew and Lilly, Ganesh Pawar and
Varsha, Rajesh Kumar and Rhema have all been able
to translate into Hindi and conduct similar seminars at
various schools, NGOs and churches. Darryl and
Rashmi Braganza and Max and Gillian Ferand have
been able to facilitate the Alpha Marriage Course and
have successfully conducted it for many groups.
Jacob and Rani in Chennai have been using Rod
Gilbert’s book called the “Marriage Masala” and have
been conducting Marriage Seminars for various
groups. Joe and Sunitha, Ashok and Suni, and Glenn
and Daniella, have successfully conducted “Growing
Kids God’s Way”, a course designed by a couple in
Singapore.
The need is great and the time at hand seems short,
but the Lord’s hand is not so short that it cannot save.
This mountain is to be conquered and those who are
ready will keep advancing, because from the days of
John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven has
been forcefully advancing and forceful men (and
women) lay hold of it. Let’s go for it!
- Esme Mehta
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November 2013
| column
Artists as Restorers
by Mark Raja
About the author:
Mark Raja has pioneered
Integrated Arts Movement (IAM)
dedicated to inspiring followers
of Jesus to engage their culture
to create a more good and
beautiful world.
Artists are normally considered as
transgressors, opposite to
conservatives, misfits, and even
separated as rebels among some
spiritual circles. The church is
considered to be conservative and
spiritual, so they do not have any role
in matters of faith and holiness unless
they make Biblical-themed art or
design posters for Church events or
sing and play accepted music at
Church. Today many in Church
believe that Art has its legitimate
purpose only when made for the
Church or for evangelism. But is that
the only purpose God has for arts
and artists?
For many Christians, God’s story
begins with the fall of man
(Rom. 3:23) and ends with God’s
redemption on the cross (John 3:16)
and the preaching of the Gospel to all
nations. Yes, this is the very essence
of our faith, but is it all of the essence
of our faith?
The story arc of the Bible spans
across creation, fall, redemption and
finally, restoration and the new
creation. His glorious new heavens
and new earth is for a sinless eternity.
But do we not often truncate God’s
story by only focusing on the
redeeming work of Christ and
missing His grand purpose for His
creation and its ultimate renewal?
(Gen. 1:26-28, Rev. 21 & 21, Col. 1:
15-20, Gen. 2:15.)
For those Christians who focus only
on the redemption aspect of the
story, their main purpose is to save
souls and go to heaven. They tend to
separate themselves from the world.
Their contact with the world is only to
win souls. So they make Art only for
Church or evangelism. Let us call
them Separatists.
Those who focus only on Creation
are those who blend with the world.
They are involved in many
philanthropic projects but have a very
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very little understanding on the
redemptive work of God through
Jesus. Let us call them Blenders.
But there is a third category –
Restorers. These are people who
live their lives with the
understanding of the complete
story as God the Creator,
Redeemer and the God who is
reconciling all of creation unto
him. …and through him to
reconcile to himself all things,
whether things on earth or things in
heaven, by making peace through
his blood, shed on the cross (Col.
1: 20). These people believe that
telling about Jesus is extremely
important, but conversion of souls
is not their only motive. Their
mission is to infuse the world with
His truth, goodness, beauty, grace,
justice and love. They pray “Your
kingdom come. Your will be done,
on earth as it is in
heaven” (Matt. 6:10). They
understand the fallen world and
God’s original intent for man and all
of creation is the world that ought
to be. God often uses artists as
restorers.
They share the love of Christ and
make disciples because people
should restore their relationship
with God. They make art to restore
the world with Truth, Justice,
Goodness, Beauty, Love, Mercy,
Healing, Hope, etc. We desire to see churches nurture
artists as restorers. Often, art
produced outside the Church is
considered worldly or secular, and
art made within the Church is
sacred. This sacred-secular divide
dishonors God.
The Bible says that we are to live all
of our life in the presence of God
under the authority of God and to
the honor and glory of God. (Col. 3:
23&24, 1 Pet 2:9, Matt 5:16) My
Art, health, family, business,
neighborhood etc., matters to God
just as much as my soul matters to
Him. Dutch politician and
theologian Abraham Kuyper once
said “…there is not a square inch in
the whole domain of our human
existence over which Christ, who is
Sovereign over all, does not cry:
‘Mine!’” Lordship of Christ over the
whole of man and the whole of the
universe is what the Bible talks
about.
Art isn't inert; it actually does
something to you as a person and
affects your outlook on life and how
you approach everything. So as an
artist you have a unique role in
God’s Kingdom. Typically, ideas
spread through culture from
Philosophers and Intellectuals
through Artists to Professionals and
then to the Common man. Artists
shape culture, in other words
Artists disciple nations. If you have
identified your role in God’s
kingdom and have heard His call,
respond to the burden God has
placed within and in front of you by
making great art works that
incarnates Christ and
communicates the restoration that’s
possible in reality. The world will
take notice.
How IAM nurtures artists as
restorers
• IAM facilitate discussions, film
screenings, workshops etc.
• Encourage meaningful use of arts in
the Church.
• Develop programs to encourage
and mentor artists professionally and
spiritually.
• Our programs and resources equip
the creative community to generate
good, true, and beautiful cultural
artifacts: sign-posts pointing toward
the “world that ought to be.”
• Through understanding the culture
that is and looking toward what
could be, we hope to re-humanize
our world.
Vice President Pride
Tom was so excited about his promotion to Vice President of the company he worked for and kept
bragging about it to his wife for weeks on end.
Finally she couldn't take it any longer, and told him, "Listen, it means nothing, they even have a vice
president of peas at the grocery store!"
"Really?" he said. Not sure if this was true or not, Tom decided to call the grocery store.
A clerk answers and Tom says, "Can I please talk to the Vice President of peas?"
The clerk replies, "Canned or frozen?"
10
November 2013
| happenings
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2
3
4
5
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1. Stanley passing on the baton to Joemon, as the latter takes over the mantle of BBC.
2. David Selvan receiving the “Best student award”, MA Christian Management (Martin Luther Christian University)
3. Anand speaking at RZIM National Conference in Hyderabad.
4. 10th year celebration of the CCC (Hyderabad) - Mohan & Sareeta praying over Jose and Annie.
5. Hyderabad Church (CCC) conducted an Eye Screening Camp at Vijaylaxmi Stonebridge Memorial School
6.Workshop at BBC Colaba “ Life’s Healing Choices”
11
November 2013
| happenings
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8
9
10
12
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7 & 8. Rain Trek - Mumbai Youth
9. UAE Church - Family Camp
10 & 11. “Plunge” - Youth Camp
12. Anil Thomas conducting a training program for slum kids (in collaboration with Mumbai Police)
12
November 2013
| column
The media mountain
by Mobis Philipose
Adolf Hitler's propaganda chief,
Joseph Goebbels, is believed to have
said, “If you repeat a lie often
enough, people will believe it, and
you will even come to believe it
yourself.” The irony here is that there
is no credible source attributing this
statement to Goebbels -- so it’s quite
likely that the above statement itself
is the result of a lie being repeated
many times over.
Mobis Philipose works with HT
Media Ltd and pastors a GMI
satellite church in Kandivali,
Mumbai. He is married to
Sushmita and they have a
daughter
Even so, this is the sad reality of the
state of affairs in various forms of
media we are exposed to. A Press
Council of India appointed committee
concluded that the pernicious
practice of ‘paid news’ has become
widespread across media in different
parts of the country. A parliamentary
committee concurred with these
findings earlier this year. Paid news
refers to the practice followed by
some media houses of charging
money for positive news coverage.
Such practices can be used by
political parties to win elections; by
business houses to further their own
interests and sully competitors, and
by those involved in corruption to
deflect attention. Of course this is not the only
challenge being faced in the media
sphere – like in most parts of the
world, even Indian media has
developed a weakness for glamour,
which results in a disproportionately
high amount of time and space
devoted to inconsequential news.
Besides, a survey by UK-based
International News Safety Institute
listed India as the second most
dangerous country for journalists,
after Syria. Apart from killings,
journalists and media houses are
often harassed with law suits in
different parts of the country; such
forms of persecution further impact
the media sphere and its ability to
13
bring out truth.
The church of the Lord Jesus Christ
is best positioned to tackle each of
these challenges. Thanks to God’s
grace and redemptive power, his
people are far better equipped to
tackle the above-mentioned
attempts to corrupt and threaten
journalists to suppress truth. Also,
while there already are wellmeaning journalists and editors,
Christ’s followers have a distinct
edge because they believe in an
absolute truth revealed by God in
the Scriptures.
While all of the above refers to the
redemptive role Christians can play
in this sphere, it’s also important to
see media as the mouthpiece for all
the mountains. For perspective, the
church is involved in transforming
lives through Sahaara Charitable
Trust. A kingdom-focused media
organization will highlight this, while
another media organization might
not be interested. Similarly, the
former will be naturally inclined to
draw attention to truth, honesty
and courage; while the latter is
likely to be driven by other
considerations.
In fact, God can do amazing things
through His ambassadors even
when they are not a majority and
are not in control of newsrooms. I
can say this with confidence based
on the experience of other Christian
journalists and my own journey in
the media industry.
Many of us already know how God
opened a door miraculously for
Anand Mahadevan (a senior
journalist) to write about the story of
Greater things are
yet to come and
greater things are
still to be done.
his conversion to Christianity, just at
the time when the name of God’s
church was being sullied during the
persecution in Orissa and
Karnataka. God’s hand was evident
as Anand wasn’t directly involved
with the magazine the story
appeared in.
And when Mumbai was reeling
under the shock of the serial train
blasts in July 2006, Jency Jacob of
CNN-IBN (a journalist), who
escaped despite being on one of
the trains, declared to the world his
Saviour – the Lord Jesus Christ –
and two verses that gave him
strength – Ps 23:1 & 4.
God has provided me
opportunities to bring out truth,
despite various forms of pressure.
Some stories, miraculously, have
even turned out to be prophetic. In
addition, one of the highlights of my
work as a journalist was when our
editor called me to do a
background check on a senior
bureaucrat, and later his decision
on running an important story was
based on this input. Besides, he
asked me to speak on the
importance of integrity and honesty
in our organization, for a promotion.
Is all this not God’s hand working
powerfully in our midst, even
though we appear to be a minority?
Even so, as the words of Bluetree’s
famous song ‘God of this city’ puts
it, “Greater things are yet to come
and greater things are still to be
done.” Keeping this in mind, the
church should not only pray for a
more effective media industry, but
also encourage its youth to shine
their light in the sphere and claim
the media mountain.
Jesus is watching you...
A burglar broke into a house one night. He shone his flashlight around looking for valuables, and when he
picked up a CD player to place it in his sack, a strange, disembodied voice echoed from the dark saying,
“Jesus is watching you,”
He nearly jumped out of his skin, clicked his flashlight off and froze. When he heard nothing more after a
bit, he shook his head, promised himself a vacation after the next big score, then he clicked his light back
on and began looking for more valuables.
Just as he pulled the stereo out so he could disconnect the wires he heard, “Jesus is watching you.”
Freaked out, he shone his light around frantically, looking for the source of the voice. Finally, in the corner
of the room, his flashlight beam came to rest on a parrot.
“Did you say that?” He hissed at the parrot.
“Yep,” the parrot confessed, and then squawked, “I’m just trying to warn you.”
The burglar relaxed. “Warn me, huh? Who are you?”
“Moses” the bird replied.
“Moses?” the burglar laughed. “What kind of stupid person would name a parrot Moses?”
The bird promptly answered “Probably the same kind of people that would name a Rottweiler “Jesus.”
14
November 2013
| column
The mountain of education
- another brick in the wall
by Glen Croning
Behind enemy Lines:
Glenn Croning is the Principal of
Stanes Anglo Indian Hr. Sec
School Coonoor & Stanes
School Annur. He is married to
Daniella. They have 2 children.
Glenn's previous assignments
were with Tata-AIG and TVS,
where he imparted training in IT
& Soft skills. During his
corporate career, he has trained
over 6000 individuals, including
senior managers & CEOs.
Enjoys cricket, video games,
and watching movies. Loves
Jesus, his Family and Church.
Little Johnny was asked by his
mother what he had learned in
Sunday School. Little Johnny quickly
got his iPad and looking into it he
said "Well, Mom, our teacher told us
how God sent Moses behind enemy
lines on a rescue mission to lead the
Israelites out of Egypt. When he got
to the Red Sea, he had his engineers
build a pontoon bridge and all the
people walked across safely. Then he
used his walkie-talkie to radio
headquarters for reinforcement. They
sent bombers to blow up the bridge
and saved the Israelites. "Is that really what your teacher
taught you?" "Well, no, Mom, but if I told it the way
the teacher did, you'd never believe
it."
Some of us have used this in our
sermons and most of us have
laughed hearing it. Little Johnny is
generation iY led by left-Brainism.
What is Education? Education is the
knowledge or a skill obtained or
developed by a learning process.
Institutes that are today at the top of
the mountain are Harvard, College of
William and Mary, Yale and Princeton.
These four universities alone are
responsible for eighteen American
presidents. All these universities
started with the sole purpose of
creating a worldview that put God in
the centre of life as the One around
whom we all must orbit. Three
hundred and fifty years later these
universities continue to have the
greatest influence on worldview but
sadly they are a bastion for liberalism,
which is manifested in a philosophy
that displaces God from the centre
and puts man there instead.
15
This mountain was once dominated
by those who believed in God as
the centre of life. Today it is
infiltrated and taken over by forces
opposed to this view.
From Left-Brainism to RightBrainism. We are all born with a
dual core processor, left brain and
right brain. They process
information in an entirely different
manner. The left brain is similar to
the ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit) of a
computer where information is
processed analytically and
sequentially. If you are weak in
math you know which side to
blame. The right brain is the
creative side. It processes
information all at once and is not
highly organised. Art, Music, this
article, all are products of
predominately the right brain.
Upon entering school, most
children are right-brain. It doesn’t
take long however for that to
change dramatically after few years
of education. Today 90 percent of
the children are left-brain dominant.
Why is this important? What’s
wrong with being left-brain
dominant?
When Jesus came, the greatest
influencers of the education
mountain were the Greeks who
were highly left brain dominant. So
John the Baptist had to prepare the
people by saying,” There is a man
coming from Heaven and he is
about to blow your mind, those
with a left processor will find it
difficult to understand.” Here are
the challenges the left-brain culture
faced when Jesus spoke. Logic
states that two plus two is four. I’ll
show you that one can put a
thousand to flight and two can
chase ten thousand. I’ll show you
how two fish and five pieces of
bread can feed more than five
thousand. And to really mess your
left brain, there will be more left
over than there was to start with! I
am going to defy the laws of
physics and walk on water. If you
want to be great, you must become
nothing. If you want to live, you
must die. If you want to go up, you
must go down. His principles
baffled Greek computations. Unless
it’s logical, it is not acceptable. All
of Jesus’ teaching can be
challenged by the left brain and can
be rejected. With 90 percent of the
current generation being left brain,
you can understand how hard it is.
Now do you understand the
dilemma of Little Johnny who was
asked by his mother what he had
learned in Sunday School. Add
Generation i Y to this.
From Generation to Generation:
Let’s look at Generational
demarcation. People born between
1926 – 1945 Boosters , 1946 –
1965 Boomers (baby boomers) ,
1966 – 1985 Gen X , 1986 – 2005
Gen Y and 1995 > Generation iY.
The difference between these
generations can be illustrated by
the story of three missionaries
representing each of the three
generations being asked by their
leaders to jump in the air: the
Booster asked, ‘How high?’; the
Boomer asked, ‘Why?’; and the
GenX said, ‘I’ll jump if you jump
with me’! If we add Gen iY they
might say, ‘I’ll jump if you hold my
iPad for me!’ .
Generation iY is
1) An overwhelmed generation:
94% claim to feel overwhelmed by
their lifestyles
2) An over-connected generation:
they master new technology easily,
but their lives are increasingly
governed by devices that can be
addictive psychologically and
physically.
3) An over-protected generation:
children have grown up in an
obsessively protective world –
shielded from danger, pain and
discomfort, often sheltered to the
extent that much of their life is
spent indoors in front of screens –
they live ‘virtual lives’.
4) An over-served generation: they
grow up knowing they are the focus
of their world – families, advertisers,
retailers, educationists and
politicians. They become
narcissistic, idealists without the will
or endurance to persevere and
persist through pain and
deprivation
5) Gen iY can also be energetic,
confident and capable. They dream
big, they are hugely optimistic and
they care for their friends – peer
relationships are often paramount
because they lack points of
connection with parents, family,
teachers and society at large. This
completes your understanding of
Little Johnny, a generation iY kid
lead by left-brainism. Are you still
laughing?
The Strongholds: The stronghold of
the left-brainism - “mind of reason”
has led to Pride, Humanism,
Rationalism and Atheism. Left brain
thinking shapes all our educational
institutions. It determines the
careers we value - compare the
pay scales for lawyers, doctors,
and bankers to those of artists,
musicians, and writers. What is the
kind of man
16
you want your daughter to marry? I
am yet to hear one say I want mine
to marry a poet.
Kingdom Strategy: How do we
address this?
1) We need spirit-filled educators people who can present curriculum
in a way that is balanced
2) Restoration of creativity - The left
brain is designed to serve the
interests of the right brain. We were
created to submit the left brain to
right brain perceptions.
3) Discovery of destiny & purpose we need to help all to understand
that they have a destiny and
purpose, and
4) Develop a kingdom worldview - a
worldview that puts God in the
centre of life as the One around
whom we all must orbit. If we don’t,
they’ll find something else - New
Age, drugs, music, Harry Potter, or
anything to satisfy the right-brain
craving.
This is a huge mountain and needs
to be addressed by a five-fold
ministry. All need to play an active
part. Apostles to influence thinkers
and universities. Prophets who can
see into the future of this mountain.
Teachers who can bring balance to
left-brain: right-brain thinking.
Pastors who can help this
generation connect with people.
Taking over this
mountain is not to
impose religion on
anyone.
Evangelists who can present the
true gospel of Jesus. Intercessors
who can pray for practical solutions
to problems of this mountain.
I am not suggesting that “Jesus”
needs to be stamped all over the
curriculum for it to be anointed and
useful. The kingdom of God always
advances under free will. Taking
over this mountain is not to impose
religion on anyone. It simply means
creating a level playing field. If we
present the true gospel of Jesus,
He will be so attractive that He will
draw all men to Himself. Little
Johnny will have the courage to
believe and tell his Mom that it was
Jesus who parted the Red Sea.
This is the endgame of the
mountain to be a source of
“wisdom”. Let us help in raising a
generation that is better than ours.
So much is talked about and so
much money is spent on leaving a
better planet for the next
generation; let us work towards
leaving a better generation for this
planet.
(This article in inspired by many
authors, borrowed Jokes and my
own experience)
NOTE: Please refer statistics on the
following page
Swim of Love...
Once there was a millionaire who collected live alligators. He kept them in the pool in the back of his mansion. The millionaire also had a beautiful single daughter. So one day he decides to throw a huge party, and during the party he announces: "My dear guests, I have a
proposition to every man here. I will give one million dollars or my daughter to the man that can swim across this
pool full of alligators and emerge unharmed!"
As soon as he finished his last word there was the sound of a large SPLASH! One guy was in the pool,
swimming as fast as he could, and the crowd was cheering him on. Finally he made it to the other side
unharmed.
The millionaire was impressed. He said "My boy that was incredible! Fantastic! I didn't think it could be done! Well I must keep my end of the bargain, so which do you want: my daughter or the one million dollars?
The guy says "Listen I don't want your money! And I don't want your daughter! I just want the goober who
pushed me into that pool!
17
Statistics on Education & Vocation in India
The Indian education system is the largest in
Commonwealth countries and the second largest in the
world, after USA. Tremendous Growth since
Independence, but still:
Gross Enrollment Ratio:
Classes (I-V)
(6-11 years)
109.4%
Classes (VI-VIII)
(11-14 years)
71.15%
Classes (I-VIII)
(6-14 years)
94.92%
Classes (IX-X)
(14-16 years)
52.26%
Classes (XI-XII)
(16-18 years)
28.54%
Higher Education
(18-24 yrs)
11.61 %
(6-11 years)
25.47 %
(6-14 years)
(6-16 years)
48.71 %
61.59 %
The dropout rate:
Classes (I-V)
Classes (I-VIII)
Classes (I-X)
These high dropout rates in school, combined with low
enrolment rates at the higher levels deprive tens of
millions of children of their full rights as citizens.
Vocational training and self-employment avenues
! Every year 5.5 million students pass out of Class X, of
which 3.3 million go to Class XI, leaving 2.2 million out
of the education stream.
! Those who drop out after Class VIII are approx. 20-21
million. They need attention.
! Available formal training capacity of the country - only
2.3 million students. This leaves a gap of 18.7 million.
The ITI system needs to revamp to fill this gap.
Among persons of age 15 years and above:
! Only 2 % had any type of technical degrees/ diplomas/
certificates.
! The proportion was only 1% in the rural areas and 5 %
in the urban.
! Only 40 % of the 55,000 instructors have undergone a
full instructor-training course” (Urgent need for training
of trainers) (Planning Commission).
! About 95% of the world youth (15 - 35 yrs) age learn
any type of vocation / skill / trade, with a choice of
3000 vocational streams.
! In India we have identified only about 170 trades and
only 2-3% of the youth (15-29 yrs) goes in for formal
vocational training.
! China has nearly 500,000 senior higher secondary
vocational schools, whereas we have about 5100 ITI’s
and 6000 VET schools in all.
To boost Vocational Education and Skill Development,
the Prime Minister in his Independence Day address
stated that, opening 1600 new ITI’s and Polytechnics
and 50,000 new Skill Development Centers, would
enable 10,000,000 students get vocational training.
Compared to many developed countries India is far
behind in introducing new and innovative trades in VET
to attract young children. Only 5% in the (20 – 24) age
group have undergone formal vocational training as
compared to 60 – 80% in most industrialized nations.
Every year 5-7% should be involved in vocational
programmes.
EDUCATING DROPOUTS WITH SKILLS
Out of approx. 211 million children in the (6-14
yrs) age group - 84.91 % are enrolled in schools.
More than 35 million children in the (6-14) age
group are out of school
Net primary school enrolment/attendance is only
77%
By year 2016 there will be approx. 500 million
people with less than five years of schooling
Another 300 million that will not have completed
high school.
Two-third of the population will lack minimum level of
education
More than 50 % of the girls in the country do not
enroll in schools
Only 45.8 % girls complete education in rural areas as
compared to 66.3 % boys. In urban areas, 66.3 % girls
complete education as opposed to 80.3 % boys
Children put in an average of 21 hours of labour per
week, at the cost of education
60 million children are thought to be child laborers
35% of our population are still illiterate
18
November 2013
| blog excerpt
Reclaiming the 7
mountains
(excerpt from Os Hillman’s blog)
The idea of “Reclaiming the 7
Mountains”, or “The 7 Mountain
Mandate, has got a lot of attention in
the Christian community in recent
years. Whether you call them
“mountains”, “spheres”, or “mindmoulders”, it is clear that this idea is
not just a trend, and is here to stay.
Every concerned Christian wants to
serve God with the love, care,
integrity, and selfless servant-hood
that our Saviour Jesus modelled. The 7 Mountain Mandate gives us a
framework to live out what Jesus said
when he came to reclaim “that which
was lost” (Luke 19:10). Os Hillman is president of
Marketplace Leaders, an
organization whose purpose is to
help men and women discover
and fulfill God’s complete
purposes through their work and
to view their work as ministry.
Loren Cunningham described the
revelation he received from God on 7
Mountains thus: And I said, "These are the areas that
you can go into as missionaries. Here
they are: First, it’s the institution set
up by God first, the family. After the
family was church, or the people of
God. The third was the area of
school, or education. The fourth was
media, public communication, in all
forms, printed and electronic. The
fifth was what I call celebration, the
arts, entertainment, and sports,
where you celebrate within a culture. The sixth would be the whole area of
the economy, which starts with
innovations in science and
technology, productivity, sales, and
service. This whole area we often
call it business, but sometimes leave
out the scientific part, which actually
raises the wealth of the world. Anything new, like making sand into
chips for a microchip, that increases
wealth in the world. And then of
course prediction sales and service
helps to spread the wealth. And so
the last was the area of government. Now government, the Bible shows in
Isaiah 33 verse 22 that there are
three branches of government, so it’s
all of the three branches: judicial,
legislative, and executive. And then
there are subgroups under all of
those seven groups. And there are
literally thousands upon thousands of
19
sub-groups. But those seven can
be considered like mountains.
Caleb said: ‘Give me this
mountain,’ and they can be a
‘mountain’ to achieve for God. Or
they can be a classroom that you’re
going to disciple a nation in. Because Jesus said, ‘Go and
disciple all nations. ’And it also can
affect us because in those areas
we can be changed, transformed
by the Holy Spirit to be effective
missionaries into the area that God
has called us into, and we will see it
as not just a job to get money to
stay alive, but ‘as the Father sent
Me, so send I
you,’ Jesus
said.
and seasoned than us? Are we
willing to take risks, influenced by
His leading and trustworthy leaders
around us? Most often our pride
gets in the way of being truly used
by Him. But Jesus’ model is that of
discipleship. If we are going to
disciple nations, the culture, even
our own communities, we need to
be willing to be discipled ourselves. The higher you go up a “mountain”,
the more intense it becomes. We
need to make sure our foundations
are solid and secure, especially in
the area of family root systems, in
from here.” (Exodus 33:15) Moses
knew He needed God’s presence
to exercise His authority. Those
God calls into leadership have the
mark of His presence. His
presence is the foundation for
miracles. It means we have
devoted ourselves to a life of
integrity and of seeking after
Him. His presence gives credibility,
but we must also be credible in our
field too. We must be excellent. If
we are not credible, we lose our
Christian witness. It’s as simple as
that. Joseph was a Hebrew. He
had a Hebrew’s heart. He was
circumcised: a
mark of his
covenant with
God Almighty. But, he ate,
looked, and
talked like an
Egyptian. He
learned the
culture. However,
he did not
compromise his morals. This is
how he was able to remain at the
top, and even re-promoted after he
was wrongly accused. The higher you go up a “mountain”, the more
intense it becomes. We need to make sure our
foundations are solid and secure, especially in
the area of family root systems, in order to ensure
we are not taken out by the enemy’s schemes.
What do we
have to do to
raise up a
generation of
passionate,
principled
Christ-seekers,
in education, in
media, in entertainment, in
business, in government? First we have to realize that our
lives are not our own. Our lives are
not just God’s for two hours on a
Sunday, or 10% of our gross
income; our lives are His 24-7. There is no divide between our
work and our calling. Our work is
our calling. Our lives are our calling. Everything we do is worship to
Him. Our lives are a reflection of
His love and redemption – as we
continue to allow Him to do his
shaping work in our lives. “To
whom much is given, much is
required.” Our worldview must
match that of the Bible. Second, we need to ask ourselves
whether or not our faith is truly
authentic. Are we hearing from
God on a regular basis? Are we
fellow-shipping with other
believers? Do we make worship
and tithing a regular practice? Are
we willing to be mentored, or to
learn the “paths” of Christ through
someone more spiritually mature
order to ensure we are not taken
out by the enemy’s schemes. (1
Peter 5:8) Living off emotions
versus proven practice of principles
will ensure our witness will not
endure, and prove our root systems
shallow. Many leaders discovered
the integrity they began with was
not strong enough to keep them on
the top of a cultural mountain and
were taken out through moral
failure. Finally, how are we different from
non-believers? Why would anyone
who is not a Christian want to be
like us? Do we have a life worth
emulating? If we do not have the
fruits of peace, joy, and love in our
lives, why would people want to be
around us? Leadership is influence.
The truth is anyone can be a nice
person. Anyone can walk in
integrity. But, what is our mark of
distinction? It is His presence. God’s presence enables us to have
influence. His presence gives us
favour; it goes before us. Moses
said to God, “If your Presence does
not go with us, do not send us up
In summary, Reclaiming the 7
Mountains is a personal journal of
encountering Christ in a real and
tangible way every day. It then
extends to every aspect of our
lives, with whomever we encounter. We are called because we have
encountered Him. We are called
because we love. We are called
because we serve. In whatever
field or mountain you find yourself,
seek God’s will in everything you
do. His desire is for us to excel. His desire is for us to be
influencers. But discipleship must
happen in our hearts before we can
disciple the world around us. People will begin to listen when our
love and credibility precedes our
message. Reclaiming the 7
Mountains is about manifesting the
true love, nature, and character of
Jesus in every place in society by
living with Him every day.
20
November 2013
|Q&A
A brief Q & A in the Seven
Mountains Mandate
by Anand Mahadevan
A wonderful young believer, who is
gifted in music, recently decided to
quit a 'secular' rock band he was
part of.
This is how he explained his decision
on a post on Facebook. "I really
couldn't do justice to the lyrics of
those songs. They were either too
vulgar, or I couldn't mean it when I
played them. However there are
definitely a few nice songs."
Anand Mahadevan has been a
follower of Jesus Christ since
1993 and a business journalist
since 1994 and he works
currently in ET as features
editor. He is married to Ajitha
and they have two children.
Anand and a small team are
planting New City Church in
South Mumbai.
He made a wise choice. And many
believers applauded his decision and
encouraged him. But if this young
man's journey in 'secular' music ends
here, it would be a loss for God's
kingdom here on earth.
Music doesn't belong to the world. It
belongs to God. It is a gift from God
to humanity. But it has been stolen,
corrupted and abused. This young man did the right thing by
choosing not to sing songs that are
vulgar. But that is only the first step.
The second step would be to
prayerfully create excellent and
beautiful 'secular' music that
celebrates all of life and all that God
has given to mankind.
This young man needs to engage
with the mountain of arts and
entertainment. He needs to
prayerfully work to restore it to the
original glory God intended for it. The young man's journey, his doubts,
his struggles and challenges mirrors
that of countless other believers who
engage with the seven mountains.
What is right and what is wrong?
How far can I go? How can I engage
with only the good, beautiful parts of
secular culture and reject the sinful
parts? These are questions we need
to wrestle with and find Christinspired answers to. Hopefully, this
small primer on the seven mountains
will get us started on that journey.
21
What is the Biblical basis for the
seven mountains mandate?
God’s mandate to Adam and Eve
was to have dominion over all of
creation. This included the
hardware – land, plants, animals
etc. It also included the software –
culture, arts, government etc.
Adam’s sin messed up God’s plan
for creation. But Jesus came to
redeem humanity and all of creation
(Romans 8:18-24). Jesus has also
sent us to be `in the world, but not
of it.’ He has sent us to be ‘salt’
and ‘light.’ He has given us the
mandate to influence all of culture
with kingdom values. Jesus also
taught us to pray for God’s
kingdom to come on earth as it is in
heaven. The seven mountains
mandate encourages believers and
churches to actively live out all of
the above.
What are some examples of seven
mountains initiatives churches
could consider?
Arts & Entertainment – Encourage
Christian artists to write and
produce so called `secular’ music,
theatre etc that is good, clean and
beautiful and is deeply rooted in
God’s vision for humanity.
Business – Encourage
entrepreneurship, especially startups that have a vision to benefit
society at large. Media – Encourage believers to see
career options in journalism as a
calling. Social Media platforms are
a great opportunity that now
enables anyone to create media for
the masses. Encourage believers to
create videos etc. Again, these
videos could be anything that is
good, clean and beautiful and is
deeply rooted in God’s vision for
humanity.
Government – Encourage believers
with a vision for politics. Encourage
believers to pursue a career in the
government services as a kingdom
calling.
Education – Setting up schools and
vocational training institutes.
Encourage doctoral research on
issues that could benefit society at
large. Help believers and families
see that getting a good education
is not just about 'securing our
future' but it is more about 'using
our education to extend God's
kingdom here on earth.'
Family – Develop and offer marriage
and parenting courses not only to
those in the church but also to
those outside.
Religion – This would cover all the
ministries we do.
Does this mean the church should
start projects in the seven
mountains?
Not necessarily. The church need
not get involved in specific projects
in each mountain, but it should
encourage, disciple, nurture and
release members to be salt and
light in every mountain. For
example, a church may choose to
take on projects in the areas of
family through a parenting course
or in education by starting a school
etc. But it may choose to pray for,
encourage and spiritually equip
believers as they move into the
other mountains of arts and
entertainment, media, business etc,
without directly getting involved in
projects there.
But is it really wise for believers to
get involved in things like
Bollywood, rock bands etc in the
name of seven mountains? Won't
these corrupt us and lead us into
sin?
We are a 'sent people'. Being salt
and light means to spread
ourselves through all culture in our
cities and influence culture. We are
not to be influenced by popular
culture, but we are called to
influence popular culture. We can't
be salt and light from the outside.
We need to be inside. "Again Jesus
said, “Peace be with you! As the
Father has sent me, I am sending
you.” And with that he breathed on
them and said, “Receive the Holy
Spirit."John 20:21 Jesus has sent
us into the world just as the Father
sent Him into the world. And when
Jesus sends us into the world, He
gives us His Holy Spirit. Jesus has
sent us to be ‘in’ the world, but not
‘of ’ the world. This is an extremely
challenging balance and we are
incapable of doing this right apart
from the Holy Spirit. Pastors,
elders, cell leaders and the church
can play a big role in encouraging,
nurturing and discipling those
engaged in the seven mountains.
They need to affirm those called to
go into the seven mountains and
teach them that none one can bear
fruit unless they remain in Jesus.
A pastor or church elders may not
have any expertise in some of
these mountains. How can they
help believers operating in these
mountains?
Christian artists, professionals,
businessmen, politicians - all need
discipleship. Church leaders may or
may not be able to help them with
skill, but they can certainly help
them build character. To really
influence the seven mountains,
believers will need Christ-like
character as much as they need
skill. Lastly, influencing the seven
mountains also involves spiritual
warfare. Covering in prayer can
really bless believers trying to
influence these mountains.
Should all seven mountains
projects be individual church
projects?
Of course not! We as churches
need to really take a kingdom view
in our approach to influencing the
seven mountains. For example,
churches in a locality could come
together to do a seminar on 'family
life' intentionally aimed at our
friends who do not know Jesus. Or
churches in a locality could come
together to plan a 'musical night'
with very carefully chosen 'secular'
songs that celebrate God's gifts to
humanity. These could also be
great opportunities for us to meet
our neighbors and build
relationships.
22
November 2013
| readers write
Very proud of what God is doing through you all
and through GMI Hallelujah! Rev Charles Lazaro, Senior Pastor,
Dandenong Baptist Church, Australia
Dear Editor Wonderful work. I am really impressed with
the design and the content. Really like it.
Can you send me the previous 2 issues? I
will be happy to have them too.
| Chacko & Molly
We are very impressed with month's issue of
Momentum! The layout, colour scheme and font
used were professional and appealing. We like
the way the particular theme of each issue runs
through the entire magazine. The articles were
well written and overall a very wholesome
reading experience. So good to read something
that is not only contemporary but trustworthy! Thank you very much. It is much more
than a magazine, it communicates the
ethos of who we are and the life of a
community called out to follow Christ.
| Vasu
I do have a suggestion. Wonder if it would be
possible to include an article by a young person
- under 18 year old? | Kavi & Anna
The issue is good. Design and font was also
good. Most of the articles on “Servanthood”
were good. Perhaps you can have articles from
great Bible preachers on theme topics also
(according to space availability). Need to pay
attention to spelling and editing issues to
improve it.
Thank you for sending me Momentum.
Excellent stuff! I read the editorial &
Stanley's article so far. Very good! It's got a
stamp of excellence in the way it is
produced. Thank you again.
| Arun Philip, Community of Grace
| Pramila
Greetings from Vancouver! Thanks a lot for
sending through your recent Momentum
publication. I thought it was good solid stuff! It
reminded me of the New Wine magazine in
the early 80’s, which looked in depth at
different Kingdom issues. It’s a credit to you
all.
Greetings. This edition of Momentum is a
wonderful read. For me personally it was
an eye opener and a character developing
dosage...
| Martin
| Steve
23
November 2013
| gmi vision
It is the dream of a place where the hurting, the
depressed, the frustrated, and the confused can find
love, acceptance, help, hope, forgiveness, guidance
and encouragement.
It is the dream of sharing the Good News of Jesus
Christ with hundreds of thousands of residents in and
around Mumbai
It is the dream of welcoming 10,000 members into the
fellowship of our church family-loving, learning, laughing
and living in harmony together.
It is the dream of developing people to spiritual
maturity through discipling and bible studies, small
groups, seminars, retreats and a Bible school for our
members.
It is the dream of equipping every believer for a
significant ministry by helping them discover gifts and
talents God gave them.
It is the dream of sending our members on short- term
mission projects and as missionaries & church workers
into major cities of India, to different states within India,
to our neighboring countries and ultimately to other
nations of the world. It is the dream of planting
daughter- churches in every local language.
It is the dream of becoming “Salt and light” in the
community, thereby influencing every sphere around us
with the Kingdom values, namely sphere of families,
education, judiciary, arts & entertainment, Media,
politics, business, industry, economics, social services,
etc.
24

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