Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy New Years Eve! Goodbye 2011! Hello 2012!!!!!!!!



 HAPPY NEW YEARS !!!!!!!!
 The European Apostolic Outreach would like to wish each and every one of you a blessed and fruitful New Year! Economies may crumble, hardships come and go But HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF GOD ABIDETH FOREVER!

 What is the will of God? 
 GOD IS NOT WILLING THAT ANY SHOULD PERISH BUT THAT ALL WOULD COME TO REPENTANCE!

TO THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE THAT WILL OF GOD AT THE VERY CORE OF YOUR WALK WITH GOD, IN FOREIGN  MISSIONS,  IN  SOUL WINNING IN ****YOUR**** FIELD,GOD BLESS YOU!

Here are just a few  songs to play the old year out with!

The Old Landmark

The Days Of Elijah

I Found The Answer

Everybody Don't Know Who Jesus Is!


 
 God Bless You!
The Ministry of European Apostpolic Outreach

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Sometimes I Thank God For Dead Batteries!

Malachi 3:11 YOU CAN DEPEND ON IT!!!!!

Years ago back in the early 1980's  I lived in San Diego , California, and worked at a restaraunt called...


 It was normal restaraunt work, but the BEST thing about it and the COOLEST thing was that my manager was this guy named  Bruce Mathers. More about that guy another time, suffice it to say HE WAS ABSOLUTELY GREAT!

 Anyway I worked the graveyard shift there as a waiter every night from Ten p.m. to Six a.m.  Just a five day work week, nothing  much to it aside from the usual kind of customers you find out in the early hours of the morning.

 But there was a period of about two weeks where it seemed ALL the employees were coming down with the flu and calling in sick. Every morning I would get off at six am and sit down in the employees area to eat breakfast before I went home. And I could always look over through the plate glass of the Managers office and see good old Bruce on the phone, getting kind of stressed, and then I could see him looking straight at me and just KNEW exactly what was about to happen.....


"Uh Joe, Three people just called in sick this morning and there aren't enough to run the breakfast rush or lunch rush this morning,,,, could you pull a double???"

If it had been ANYBODY but Bruce I would have said :"Sorry but I just can't" But Bruce was so fantastic I would always sigh and say "Let me finish my breakfast and I'll go back out there!"

 And so it went for two weeks! Every single day I was working 16 to 20 hours! And on my days off they would call me in and again I would work double shifts or longer!

It got to the point that one morning at 6 a,m. after finishing my shift I thought "I DON'T CARE WHAT HAPPENS THIS TIME, I'm BREAKING!!! TODAY I AM OUTTA HERE!!!!! These next two days are my days off and I just CAN'T work anymore!!!!!!"

But I could already see Bruce on the phone looking at me with those EYES!  Sooooo I got up like I was going to just get a cup of coffee, grabbed my coat, punched out and GOT OUTTA THERE SO FAST HE NEVER KNEW WHAT HAPPENED!

 HA!

 As I was driving home the sun was starting to come up, I was working up in the Denny's in National City, but lived on the very SOUTH side of San Diego in an area just a few miles from the Mexican Border in a spot called Del Sol.

 As I was driving home I thought "When I get home I am UNPLUGGING the phone, I am going to lay down and sleep til I dont want to sleep anymore, THEN I am going to get up and go over to ....

 " I am going to bring a book, and sit there and eat lunch and read read read and then KEEP sitting there reading, drinking diet coke and just enjoying a wonderful wonderful day off!" 
And so I got home, went in and lay down and was out like a light!

I woke up around noon, feeling so refreshed just knowing I DON'T HAVE TO WORK TODAY!!!! And I Am GOING TO McDONALDS! Ahhhhhhh! The Good Life!

 I took a shower, shaved, got dressed and went out to my car to drive over to McDonalds and.....


NOTHING.

 I had put the key in the ignition, turned it and NOTHING!
Not even the click click click click sound a dead battery usually makes!

" WHAT ON  EARTH?"  I thought "Did I leave the lights on this morning when I pulled in?" No I don't think so.... Hmmmmm. I tried it again NOTHING! I popped the hood and could see all over the posts of the cars battery that white powdery corrosion "Oh! I see! That's why nothing, All I have to do is take the battery clamps off, clean off the corrosion and put the clamps on and should be good as new!"

 Trouble was I  didn't have the tools to do that!
 SOOOOOOOOO
 I began to wiggle the clamps little by little by little til they loosened, Popped one off then the other. Cleaned off the corrosion, Hammered the clamps back on with my shoe.

 Got in the car and put the key in the ignition and......................................................

NOTHING.

 "I guess it MUST be dead after all" I thought so I Popped off the clamps again and thought "Thank Goodness there is a service station here a block away!"

 In those days the area was just starting to be developed and aside from the apartment complex I lived in there was just a Gas Station and a small Mexican Restaraunt that had the worst Mexican food you can imagine!



 So I trudged up to the gas station carting the battery, asked if they could recharge it, they said sure and so sat there for about another hour while they had it on the charger. But after another hour they came and said "Son I hate to tell you, but that battery is DEAD! I mean DONE FOR DEAD! It wont hold a charge!"

 I thought they were just trying to trick me and said "NO WAY! It worked fine just this morning, I just left the lights on in the car!" They said "Well the battery is damaged!" I said again "NO WAY!" Then they said "How did you remove it from the car?" Welllllllllllllllll Evidently in wiggling the clamps to take them off the battery posts,. I had CRACKED the seal around the posts and destroyed my own battery!

 OH NO

So I asked if they could sell me a battery. "Sure!" We'll have one out here for you first thing in the morning!"

 WHAT WHAT WHAT???!!!!!!!!

 "We'll have one out here for you first thing in the morning!"

 NO!!!!! I thought I WANT TO GO TO McDONALDS! READ MY BOOK! FREE REFILLS ON THE DIET COKE! NOOOOOOOO !!!!!!!! It's Not Fair!!!!!

"Isn't there anyway you can get one out here now? I want to go to McDonalds for lunch!"

" Sorry tomorrow is the earliest."

 Carted the battery home, saw that I had left the hood up on the car went over slammed the hood and then  for good measure KICKED THE CAR!


 And just as I kicked the car I told the Lord "This isn't FAIR! Lord! This is my one day off! I am exhausted! I was looking forward to going to McDonalds and now I can't even do THAT!  Lord YOU SAID IF I WOULD BE FAITHFUL WITH MY TITHES AND OFFERINGS YOU WOULD REBUKE THE DEVOURER FOR MY SAKE!!!!!"


And EXACTLY the second I said YOU SAID YOU WOULD REBUKE THE DEVOURER FOR MY SAKE!!!!   the Lord spoke so softly ... I heard it so clearly in my heart.....

 "I DID"

 Instantly I felt so ashamed. I thought, " Maybe I would have been in a car accident or something if I had gone driving and Maybe the Lord saved me from that!"

 Soooo with little choice I walked back to the Mexican Restaraunt for some of the worst food imagineable.
As I sat waiting for my order I looked out the window and what should zoom by but...
 Then another and another and another! Pretty soon the whole road was nothing but zooming
sherrifs cars, paramedics ambulances, and then THE SWAT TEAM!ZOOOOOM!!!!!!

 What is going ON? I thought. I asked the man there who owned the restaraunt if He Knew what was happening. He said, Maybe a fire up by the border or something.

" That must be SOME fire!"  I thought!

 Just then the mans son came running in and told us what was happening. Up at the 
 A man had come in armed with a virtual arsenal of automatic weapons and assault rifles. He had promptly begun to shoot anything that breathed in the McDonalds!

Within just MOMENTS 22 PEOPLE WERE DEAD! From 77 years of age all the way to 8 months! And anything inside that groaned still alive he would come back around and calmly finish them off!

 We listened in absolute unbelief as the reports started coming in over the news! Helicopters started coming in it was like a war zone! And then it hit me........

 I WOULD HAVE BEEN THERE!

 not I *MIGHT* have been there but .....

I ****WOULD**** Have been there!
It had been my plan before I lay down that morning! It was my plan when I woke up that afternoon! I WAS SO ANGRY that my car battery was completely dead and they didn't have one in stock as
***I WANTED TO GO TO THE SAN YSIDRO MCDONALDS!!!***

 You know that is one of the great miracles that I have experienced personally in my life. I mean can you imagine a DEAD BATTERY BEING A MIRACLE????

 I CAN!


 I know what Paul meant when he said he had LEARNED in all conditions to be CONTENT!

 I am in such good hands with Jesus! I am learning more and more that it is true

ALL THINGS work together for GOOD to them that Love the Lord

EVEN DEAD BATTERIES!

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Christmas In Nigeria 2011

Many Countries this year have experienced  a great Christmas season. Gifts, Dinners, Friends and Family but this year in Nigeria they experienced something far differrent at Christmas!

 As you know last month we were so happy to be able to tell you the wonderful revival of Apostolic  Truth that is breaking out in the major city of Abuja in Nigeria! European Apostolic Outreach sent one of our own ministers, a Nigerian brother who came to truth in the Augsburg Apostolic Lighthouse Church down to Nigeria to preach a crusade proclaiming ONE LORD ! ONE FAITH! ONE BAPTISM! and showed you the many pictures of the wonderful response of the men women boys and girls who had NEVER heard Acts 2:38 salvation preached to them before! We purchased land there and are currently endeavouring to do all we can to actually put up a building where these people can worship God in Spirit and TRUTH! Right NOW  we have men women boys and gilrs that we have baptized in Jesus Name and   prayed through to the Holy Ghost down there in Abuja right in the middle of all that!



 This week, This Christmas week in Abuja, was a dreadful turmoil and upheaval of demonic lashing out against those who have ANY kind of faith or Belief in Jesus Christ! While YOU and I were enjoying Christmas presents , Turkey and Cranberry Sauce, Pumpkin Pie and more THIS is what these dear people had to go through Christmas Morning......

Christmas Morning Bombs exploded at Christian Churches all over the City of Abuja targetting those coming to celebrate The coming of Jesus our Messiah,

 Over Forty people were dismembered, incinerated or bled to death in the brutal bloodthirsty attacks, THIS IS WHERE WE ARE REACHING OUT WITH TRUTH FOR  THE SALVATION OF THESE MEN AND WOMEN!
One of the hardest, most humiliating parts of being a missionary is that constant feeling of having to beg for help NOT for Lexus cars or Giorgio Armani suits, but merely the FUNDS to BE HERE TO PREACH SALVATION TO THESE PRECIOUS PEOPLE!

 What makes it so humiliating That after you have swallowed hard and asked for help,  you have to face  the ability of so many to HEAR the plea and then LOOK THE OTHER WAY "Someone ELSE will help them".
 That song pierced me so deeply when I heard Brother Ewings Daughter Sis Vonnie Lopez Sing it...

"The World Needs Jesus But Why Should I Tell You?
You're Busy With No Time To Spare
They're Dying Without Him
Who's Known By Just A Few
How Long Then This Thought Can You Bear"

 We are so deeply thankful for those brethren  that really care about the lost AND about Jesus commission to Go YE Into All The World And Preach The Gospel To Every Creature...."

 But so many have YET to come to that level of Christian Maturity where when they hear the plea of Missionaries for HELP! That they say in their hearts "TELL ME WHAT THEY NEED LORD! IF I HAVE IT, I'LL GIVE IT IF I DON'T PUT IT IN MY HAND AND IT'S THEIRS! I ***WON'T**** LOOK AWAY!!"

So here once again is a missionary pleading for help! Help us to establish the work not only here in the Heart Of Europe where OVER 750 MILLION  precious people need Jesus But also in our outreach into Nigeria a nation of over 150 MILLION people who must someday stand in front of God.

If you can be a part of bringing the Gospel to Europe and Africa and would like to NOT LOOK THE OTHER WAY but pitch in and HELP our offerring address is below at the bottom of the post.
 Once again we commend to you some of the most precious saints I have ever known....

    Brother and Sister Brian Shell their son Austin and daughter Kaelyn who have committed their hearts to LEAVE ALL and come help work with us Shoulder to Shoulder to do EVERYTHING WE CAN to save these people so that they too can be the very children of God!

If you are one of those who simply CAN'T   turn and look the other way and would like to do something.......... ANYTHING to help us, you can send that help to:

Be sure to mark it for either Brother Brian Shell or Brother Joseph Conroy

International Apostolic Missions
   PO Box 501
   Conyers, GA  30012

OR for the WPF
    Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship
  2250  E. 73rd St. Suite 350
 Tulsa, Oklahoma 74136
But again please make sure to mark if for either Brother Brian Shell or Brother Joseph Conroy

  God Bless You! Brother Joseph Conroy

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!

  It is such a lovely thing each year to actually be part of a time and season that men and women the whole world over stop and reflect and actually SING about this wonderful truth! That IN THE LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO " HE APPEARED AND THE SOUL FELT ITS  WORTH!"

 Can you imagine the GLORYof that night? 
The FEAR?
The Worry?
 The Shame? The Embarrasment and HUMILIATION?????

There was a REASON there was "NO ROOM" in the Inn for Mary and Joseph as Mary went into labour!

There was a REASON that as Joseph ran from door to door banging on it "Please Cousin! Please Brother! Please Friend! My Wife!! She's in labour PLEASE! HELP US!!!" that no one would open to them, only sneer out through the little window set in the door "SORRY NO ROOM!!!!! NOT HERE! SOMEWHERE ELSE!!!!" 

 NORMAL human compassion would have MADE room for a woman in labour! But this woman was KNOWN to the inhabitants of Bethlehem it was HER city  as much as it was JOSEPHS and the inhabitants knew THAT BABY IS ***NOT*** Josephs! Gossip had it that Mary was expecting from a Roman Soldier or even worse FROM A SAMARITAN (!!!!!!) and all the " righteous " people of Bethlehem said "That THING will NOT be born under MY roof! Finally ONE of them said "LET IT BE BORN OUT IN THE STABLES WITH THE OTHER ANIMALS!"

 And so the King of Glory was born in a Stable, laid in a feed trough wrapped in swaddling clothes, a man of sorrows acquainted with grief despised and rejected of men from the very moment of his birth..... and yet the night did not go unnoticed!
Luke 2:8-11

 "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo THE ANGEL OF THE LORD came upon them and the GLORY of the Lord shone round about them and they were SORE AFRAID And the angel said unto  them FEAR NOT for behold I bring you good tidings of GREAT JOY which shall be to ALL PEOPLE For unto you is born THIS DAY in the city of David A SAVIOUR which is Christ the Lord!

 Oh how wonderful is our God! How sweet he is! NO ONE alive could possibly say that from the beginning Jesus did not IDENTIFY himself with the lowest of all men!!!!

This Christmas those of you that love the Lord enough to help SPREAD THE GOOD TIDINGS A SAVIOUR HAS BEEN BORN deserve both our thanks and praise without you THE WORLD SIMPLY WOULDN'T KNOW ABOUT JESUS OF NAZARETH
THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD!

From all of us at European Apostolic Outreach
Brother Joseph Conroy, Brother and Sister Brian Shell and family

 We Love You All Dearly

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Chappy Chanukah!!!!




 One of the things that always kind of surprised me was how unaware   many of us who have been grafted into that Jewish Tree are of so many beautiful, beautiful and Biblical holidays that reflect God's Deliverance, Supply and Instruction for his people! I mean, You don't have to speak Yiddish to get a thrill out of the Story of Esther and how God brought Haman to the most sublime justice imagineable! I have aways thought that to celebrate Purim would be FANTASTICO! 

 Another of the Great Festivals is Chanukah!! In John Chapter Ten it is referred to as the Feast of the Dedication, the feast celebrating or commemorating the rededication of the Temple of God in Jerusalem after its defilement by Antiochus Ephiphanes.

 The types and shadows of Jesus Christ in this great feast are so incredible that they cannot be overlooked! Just the Menorah Itself , The candlestick that they use at Chanukah that is a little different than the seven branched candle stick in the Temple. IT has EIGHT branches instead of seven as they mark the 8 days of the miracle of the burning menorah that only had enough oil for ONE day!  But it burned for EIGHT until new oil could be made according to the recipe God gave the Hebrews. THE NINTH BRANCH is for the SHAMASH CANDLE , The "SERVANT" Candle that they use to light all the other eight! Everytime I think about that I think immediately of Jesus Christ the Light of the World that Lighteth EVERY MAN who cometh into the world!

Here is a Chanukah song that I hope you enjoy from the Chabad House Childrens Choir!

 http://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/769319/jewish/Chanukah-Oh-Chanukah.htm

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

And Now For Something Completely Different.......


 Well it's that time of year again here in Bavaria! SNOW! Hallelujah! I love this time of year here, in fact I love every one of the seasons here ! Breathtakingly beautiful.

 The snow has been drifting down gently and lazily all morning long and now everything is blanketted with it! As I sit here drinking some black tea with slices of ginger in it (If you haven't tried that yet you don't know what you're missing!) But as I sit here gazing out my window I feel as though I am back twenty years ago in Aleppo, Syria.

Every bit as lovely!
And the song that is going through my heart right now is an old Arabic song sung by one of Lebanons greatest singers of all times, a woman named Fairouz.
Fairouz is one of Lebanons Christians as well.
 The name of the song is "TALJ TALJ"
"SNOW SNOW"

   Here is the song, even though you might not understand a word of it, just the beauty of her voice warms me!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Monday, December 19, 2011

CAN You Teach Old Dogs New Tricks??????

 As long as I can remember, I have heard the phrase

 "YOU CAN'T TEACH AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS!"

 But is that really true? I guess it all depends on the dog!

(Brother Brian Shell)
(NO! HE'S NOT THE DOG IN QUESTION! THAT WOULD BE ME!)
 I know one thing... THIS old dog seems to be learning new things all the time! Tonight I was talking to my favourite fellow missionary Brian Shell and he literally blew me away! I mean it is AMAZING how some people have insights into the Word Of God that are just ASTOUNDING! I would give ANYTHING to be one half the preacher this guy is.... anyway... we came to Luke 19:10 a VERY familiar verse of scripture that I THOUGHT I had a pretty clear understanding of But Brother Shell just blasted me into a much MUCH Deeper grasp of what Jesus was talking about!

"For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."

 It happened in the house of "WEE LITTLE ZACCHEUS" the man who had climbed up in the Sycamore tree to see Jesus. In his rush to accumulate THINGS Zacchaeus had soured, trading a relationship with God for a relationship with the World, becoming a thief, a cheater, a liar and false accuser, indifferent to the needs of those around him, in the process, only concerned with GETTING for himself no matter WHAT he had to do!

In order to do so he had had to collaborate with the enemy, Rome, the enslaver of Gods' people.

 But when JESUS commanded him "ZACCHAEUS COME *DOWN*!" (you MUST come down for Jesus to enter your house!) But when he was commanded to COME DOWN ..... HE DID!!!!!!

The result was immediate!

 "And when they SAW IT they all murmured , saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a SINNER!"

Heavens to Betsy!

 BUT as the presence of the God of Israel came into that mans house, his HEART began to melt! In TRUE Repentance Zacchaeus turned to his CREATOR AND JUDGE and said...

" Behold, Lord, The Half of my goods I GIVE to the poor, AND if I have taken any thing from ANY MAN   by FALSE ACCUSATION, I restore him FOURFOLD!"

 And as quickly as he had repented the Lord ACCEPTED THAT REPENTANCE!

 "Jesus said unto him THIS DAY ***SALVATION*** is come unto THIS house forasmuch as HE ALSO IS A SON OF ABRAHAM!!!!!!"

 IT is THEN that Jesus utterred the marvellous phrase....

"For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."

I had always thought that meant solely that Jesus had come to save lost humanity! But there is just so much MORE in that phrase that SCREAMS to be revealed in us! Jesus didn't say that the Son of Man came to save * THOSE * who were lost but rather *THAT* which was lost!

What was THAT which was lost????????

SONSHIP 

The authority and dominion that God had ordained for man (Adam) to exercise! The Judicial authority that man had been created to hold! The RELATIONSHIP of SONS OF GOD that man had been created to inhabit! But when SIN came all that was LOST!

 BUT!
 BUT!!
 BUT!!!

 The Son of Man ( Jesus the LAST Adam ) came to seek AND TO SAVE (SOZO - RESTORE!) ALL OF THAT TO MANKIND! TO ALL WHO WILL TURN TO HIM!

SONSHIP

 KINGSHIP

PRIESTHOOD

 Hallelujah!

 More and more I am realizing that there is so much MORE to our Salvation and experrience than just this point or that point but rather that GOD THROUGH THE INCARNATION has come and brought RESTORATION through JESUS CHRIST
of ALL that was lost in the fall! Not JUST our SOULS but  our POSITION IN GOD! OUR DOMINION *KINGDOM* AUTHORITY!

I only have one question now.... How does this much WISDOM come out of ARKANSAS?!

Friday, December 16, 2011

A Kingly People



 One of the great titles of Jesus Christ is " King of Kings  and Lord of Lords ".

It doesn't JUST speak about his relationship to the kings and lords of this world but ALSO speaks of his relationship to his sons! You see WE are called a CHOSEN generation! A CHOSEN OFFSPRING!
BELOVED ****NOW**** ARE  WE THE SONS OF GOD!

A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD. This is our DUE! It is what we ARE! Not because of any inherent greatness in us outside of God but rather because LIKE FATHER - LIKE SON! He is our father therefore just by virtue of THAT fact we have become a ROYAL PRIESTHOOD ! LIKE BEGETS LIKE!

 One of the great areas I believe we in the twenty first century need Gods wisdom and development in is in that very area. LORD TEACH US TO BE A KINGLY PEOPLE! TEACH US TO BE A PRIESTLY PEOPLE!

Have you ever noticed when some one from a dirt poor background becomes rich the ludicrous ways they have of demonstrating their riches?

They rush out and begin to get the most guady and gouache  things imagineable! Gold Cadillacs, Gold Toilets, Diamond Heeled Shoes, Just what the GENUINELY rich call "VULGAR DISPLAYS OF WEALTH".

 Those things just scream I AM RICH IN FUNDS BUT STILL A HILLBILLY AT HEART! (I remember the great Minnie Pearl with her hat with the price tag still left on it so everyone could see how much it cost!)

 The person who has new found wealth in the bank but still feels poverty in the heart has this need to buy up all kinds of trinkets to prove he is no longer poor and also has the need to tell everyone the PRICE of each of those trinkets! "See this bathtub here? It  cost me twenty thousand dollars!" ..."This Suit I'm wearing cost 2,700 dollars".... "These shoes are Prada shoes, they cost 3,000." on and on they go all the while demonstrating that they are FAR from being wealthy. (The reality is that TRULY wealthy people are usually seen driving volkswagens and wearing blue jeans and tennis shoes  and NEVER mention their net worth.... they don't HAVE to! )

 Most People if you ask them what it means to be a king would be a little hard pressed to give the true answer!

 "Well it means you get to wear a crown , tell everyone what to do, live in a palace, have lots of servants and eat caviar for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Oh! And have lots and Lots and  LOTS of MONEY!!!!!!"

 But is that REALLY what Kingship is all about ? Crowns , Control, Cash and Caviar?"


REALLY?

I will leave you with that question for a while ! And while I do..... ponder OUR great King who gave us HIS example of TRUE Kingship!  

 And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Luke 9:58

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Poder! Maravilloso Poder!!!!!

This is one of my favourite Apostolic Songs of all time in ANY language! The brother who recreated this for youtube did an out of this world job! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2pOli5Yuag

Thursday, December 1, 2011

I AM THE VINE ***YOU*** ARE THE BRANCHES

 One of my favourite songs is an old old song called "BLESSED QUIETNESS". It was a song widely sung at the  very beginning of the last centuries Holy Ghost revival. One of the verses says ...

 "LIKE THE RAIN THAT FALLS FROM HEAVEN
LIKE THE SUNSHINE FROM THE SKY
SO THE HOLY GHOST IS GIVEN
COMING ON US FROM ON HIGH!"

To me, that is one of the most beautiful thoughts expressed in song, the FREE outpouring of Gods spirit on anyone who will just open up and receive it! It's GIVEN!

 And yet while salvation is FREE Jesus DOES have a requirement for his people.

  Jesus was very clear as to what God requires  of his children. FRUITFULLNESS. 

A RETURN ON HIS INVESTMENT!

*******SOULS*******

 So many of the issues that we place great importance on oddly enough JESUS never addressed them ....NOT ONCE in the Gospels! BUT WHAT HE DID ADDRESS OVER AND OVER was the RETURN that God expects on his INVESTMENT! Trees that bear no fruit and so are uprooted, Talents that are buried and so taken away, Branches  that bear no grapes and so are pruned off and burned .....over and over he lets us know that the failure to bring him a return on his investment is a transgression he will NOT overlook!

 YIKES

But BUT BUTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!! It doesn't have to be that way!
The Apostles asked Jesus WHAT MUST WE DO THAT WE MAY WORK THE WORKS OF GOD?

He didn't say "Fast three times a week, Pray three hours a day, Give it all in the offerring..." No the SECRET to WORKING THE WORKS OF GOD is simply BELIEVING ON HIM WHO GOD HATH SENT!

JOHN CAPTER 6
 28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do , that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent .

 To bring forth FRUIT to God Jesus tells us all we have to do is simply BELIEVE ON HIM, ABIDE IN HIM, and allow his WORD  to abide in US!

Sometimes I look at my  life as a son of God and think GOOD GRAVY! HOW????!!!!!!  HOW GOD??????????????????

 I CAN'T!

I mean I CAN'T sing, I CAN'T  preach, I CAN'T play the piano guitar or flugel horn,  I'm fat I'm Ugly, I'm bald, I'm losing both my hearing and my sight and MAYBE my mind.....When I went to the Middle East I knew I CAN'T speak Arabic When I went to Germany I knew I CAN'T speak German,  The list of I CAN'TS is MILES LONG believe me! AND YET

and yet........

GOD CAN!!!!!!!!
As I sit here this morning typing this post my mind looks back and I realize LORD look at what you have done through this totally inept last choice for the team guy ! You have taken such a LOSER and  you have brought forth FRUIT on Every Continent inhabitted by man! Africa, Europe, Asia, North America, South America

Egyptians, Jews, Syrians, Armenians, Rhodesians, Nigerians, Sierra Leonians, Asians, Chaldeans, Kurds, Assyrians, Germans, Bulgarians, Italians, British, Sudanese, Muslims,  Palestinians, Jordanians, Lebanese, Sri Lankans,  Americans, on and on and on God has actually allowed ME to baptize them and pray them through to the Holy Ghost! HOW?????????????????

 I think the answer is simple
GOD HAS CHOSEN THE FOOLISH THINGS OF THIS WORLD TO CONFOUND THE WISE!

 It never ceases to amaze me how the branch that *I* am in the family of God keeps growing in the most incredible ways!

I am sure that NO ONE who saw that hippy kid praying at an old wooden altar back in Fresno , Ca in 1972 even thought he would last a WEEK! But over the YEARS I have followed God over so much of the world AMAZED at the results of just telling people about JESUS! Two years ago God was very good to lead me to a Trinitarian Preacher from Nigeria living in Germany, he was so hungry for a walk with God that pleased him and when he heard the FULL GOSPEL of Repentance Baptism in Jesus Name and the Holy Ghost Baptism he was IMMEDIATE in his response to WALK IN THE LIGHT. Here he is in this picture to the right of our wonderful brother Brian Shell during his last revival there in Germany. His name is Brother Joseph Ayodele.

  Since hearing the FULL GOSPEL Brother Joseph Ayodele has gone FULL STEAM AHEAD for Jesus and the Act's 2:38 Message!

 Here are just a few pictures of his last crusade in Nigeria to bring TRUTH to these precious people! And OH how they are receiving it!
NOW there are ENTIRE CHURCHES just waiting for Brothe Joseph Ayodeles return so that THEY can hear the Jesus Name Message and OBEY IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 We have already purchased LAND put up a two bathrooms and are laying a foundation for our first building in Nigeria! We have already sent down Two Vans and a BUS and are raising funds to send yet ANOTHER van for Evangelization in Nigeria.

 MY HOW THE VINE WILL GROW IF YOU WILL JUST LET IT!!!

 The whole POINT of this post is NOT "PRAISE JOE CONROY"  But rather 

PRAISE JESUS OF NAZARETH WHO CAN TAKE NUTHIN' AND USE IT FOR HIS GLORY!  If I can bring forth fruit to God WHAT CAN ****YOU*** DO! I know ME! You're BETTER than me! I am sure of it! No doubt in my mind! I challenge you, young old rich poor fat skinny ugly handsome short tall LET GOD USE YOU TO BEAR WITNESS OF HIS GREAT SALVATION! THE RESULTS WILL
ASTOUND
YOU!


Sunday, November 27, 2011

Not An Original Thought In Mah Head!

The other day I was talking with one of the greatest thinkers in the Pentecostal Movement of Today, a great man of God ,one who like myself,  is not the least bit controversial, Bro. Steve Pixler. As per  usual the very CONCEPTS he shared with me have filled me with so many thoughts and ideas and UNDERSTANDINGS that I just have to dumb it all down to MY level and see if I can't share some of them with you.........

 I NEVER WOULD HAVE ANSWERED THIS QUESTION THE RIGHT WAY but here goes........

Q.)  WHAT IS THE FRUIT OF THE APPLE TREE SUPPOSED TO BE?

 Of course *I* being the thickheaded man that I tend to be would have blurted out
" APPLES!" (I mean EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT!!!!)

 But that is NOT the fruit of the apple tree, not REALLY you see the FRUIT of the apple tree was never intended by God to be just APPLES but rather ..... (wait for it...wait for it.......)

 MORE APPLE TREES!!!!!!!!

 (I mean THE CONCEPT JUST BLOWS ME AWAY!)

I have watched again and again as when someone starts to show the potential to be an APPLE TREE rather than just another APPLE IN THE BASKET the tendency of some  is to whip out the "AXE" and do every thing in their power to CHOP IT DOWN! (Which leads me to THIS question.... ARE THEY CRAZY? Shades of Athaliah!)

 I am so incredibly encouraged to see a shift away from focussing on CHURCH GROWTH to CHURCH HEALTH! A shift away from HOW MANY APPLES DO I HAVE IN MY BASKET to HOW MANY APPLE ****TREES**** HAVE I PRODUCED????

  Because the REALITY IS that HEALTHY CHURCHES ARE FRUITFUL CHURCHES!   The Miracle of the Two Fish and Five Loaves of bread was GREAT But I wonder ...... what was better? To eat the Fish and the Bread HOT OFF THE GRILL or to have to dine on the REMNANTS three days later?

 Keep the cold fish and stale bread..... keep the apples slowly rotting in their baskets.... I'm not interested in just  producing apples,  Lord, GIVE ME APPLE TREES!!!!!!!!


Thursday, November 24, 2011

Would You Like Fries With That??????????

Life is FILLED with Pleasant Surprises! One of mine came just the night before I left Germany. As per usual I was running around like a chicken with my HAID cut off when from the laundry room downstairs came the MOST UNUSUAL SOUND imagineable from my Washing Machine.

 Now this machine has seen LOTS and LOTS of duty, and it was already on its last leg but WHAT ON EARTH could be wrong with it NOW I thought???????

 For all of a sudden echoing through the entire house came a sound that can ONLY be described as sounding EXACTLY like a MAJOR armload full of frozen french fries dropped INSTANTLY into a vat of boiling oil!  SNAPPING CRACKLING AND ***POPPING!*** I ran down the stairs like a lunatic thinking that ( this shows you how dumb I truly must be) that SOMEHOW the ELECTRICITY flowing into the Machine had made some bizarre contact with the WATER in the machine and was literally CRACKLING away inside of it! I gingerly unplugged it .... nope .... no water on the floor....no electric shock.... well "LET'S PLUG HER IN AND SEE IF THAT *FIXED* IT"

 NOPE IT DID NOT! DEEP FRYER SOUNDS IMMEDIATELY (What CAN that be?????) Needless to say Old Bertha (well I didn't REALLY name my washing machine) is DEAD.

 When I get home I plan to have a proper funeral for her, her epitaph being "SHE SERVED ME WELL" If there are any churches out there that desire their missionaries to have CLEAN clothes... feel free to help me to get another one! Washing Machine that is. NOT a deep fryer!

YEE HAW!

WELL IT'SOFFICIAL!!!! I AM NOW AN HONORARY TEXAN!

 Several weeks ago I found out that in order to get my German Drivers License I would have to spend close to Five Thousand Dollars (!) and several months in driving school UNLESS I HAD A TEXAS LICENSE! All I would have had to do in THAT case was to waltz into the German Drivers Bureau and for Fifty Dollars just EXCHANGE it for a German one! SO Being MUCH smarter than the average bear I hopped on a plane for Big D Little A Double L A S and the very next day switched my California Drivers License for a Texas Drivers License! THE PERMANENT LICENSE CAME IN THE MAIL YESTERDAY!

 What a way to cap the festivities of a Wednesday Night Thanksgiving Dinner at Brother Steve Pixlers house! I mean NOW it is OFFICIAL JOE CONROY IS A TEXAN!  NOW when I say "BOY HOWDY" It's gonna really MEAN somethin'!

 IN HONOUR of my new Texanianship I post this AUDIO ONLY clip of one of my favourite singers and one of my daily prayer requests singing I'M AN OLD COW HAND !
ENJOY! Brother Joseph Conroy
YEEEEEE HAW!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym_Awd9uVsA&feature=related

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Who'd A THUNK It??????


 This morning I was looking back over the statistics of this blog. In just the few weeks I have had it up the readership just astounds me. Not just in the VOLUME but in the various nations of the earth that we are drawing readers FROM!

The list of countries includes The US, Canada, Germany, Russia, Mexico, India, Hong Kong, Australia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, France, Austria, Japan, Kenya, Nigeria, Brazil ,The Netherlands,  South Africa, Sweden, Denmark, Norway,  The UK, Costa Rica, Croatia, Switzerland, The Ukraine, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Jordan, Finland, Indonesia just absolutely AMAZING! And all that without any other promotion than going on Twitter every once and a while with a "Hey! Check out my new Post!"

 Can you IMAGINE the possibilities?

I CAN!!!!!!!!

 This has to be one of the if not THE greatest means of communication since they invented WRITING! To disseminate an idea internationally IMMEDIATELY! Well...as I said before

WHO'D A THUNK IT????!!!!!!