First exercise in ministry training

May 13, 2026

In Mark chapter 6 we have the story of how Jesus sent the Twelve out on a ministry trip to proclaim and demonstrate the arrival of the kingdom of God:

Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them. (Mark 6:7-13 NIV)

I was always puzzled why Jesus instructed the disciples not to take along any provisions or money for their journey. And then one day it struck me that Jesus was preparing them for the enormous task they would face after he had ascended to heaven: to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19). They would need faith to trust that Jesus was truly “with them always, to the very end of the age” (see Matt 28:20). And the way to develop faith is simply to start trusting God, here and now. Once you see that God can indeed be trusted, you’re willing to trust him even more.

I think it was John Wimber who used the analogy of diving into an empty swimming pool to illustrate what having faith (trusting God) is like. You’re standing on the diving board over an empty swimming pool, and the manager of the facility promises to turn the faucet on and fill the pool as soon as you’ve jumped off the diving board and are headed down towards the concrete bottom of the pool.

Is the faucet big enough to quickly fill the pool? Can the smiling pool manager really be trusted to open the faucet in time before my face hits the concrete? Well I certainly wouldn’t trust another human being in such a situation! But I would — and have many times — trust God like this., because God can always be trusted. And his faucet (power) is big enough to do anything, because nothing is impossible for him (Mark 10:27). Of course you shouldn't try to jump like this unless God actually says "Jump." But you don't need to wait for a voice from heaven before you step off the diving board — there's lots of places in Scripture where Jesus tells his followers to jump.

Training for ministry, any form of ministry, can — and should — involve risk. Again, I think it was Wimber who once said that “faith” is spelled R-I-S-K. This understanding brings a different perspective to the Mark 6 passage above, showing us that Jesus was not just sending the Twelve out to do a share of his work, he was training them so they would be ready for carrying on his mission to the world. Think of it as their first training exercise, sort of like boot camp — but with live ammunition.

I’ll visit this passage in Mark again in my next post.

—Mitch

(Image found somewhere on Reddit)

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Peter's Humility

May 6, 2026

In chapter 10 of the Book of Acts, Peter proclaims the good news about Jesus to a Gentile named Cornelius and his relatives and friends. As Peter is doing this, the Holy Spirit falls on them, and Peter immediately has them baptized. Then in chapter 11 Peter has returned to Jerusalem and is explaining to the church why he had baptized uncircumcised Gentiles. Peter answered them by telling them about the vision he had, how Cornelius had been visited by an angel, and how the Spirit of God had fallen on them in the same way as it had on them at Pentecost. Then Peter concludes by saying: “So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?” (Acts 11:17) “Who am I, Lord?” What humility to say that! And this from a man who had experienced Christ in so many ways! I think Peter probably learned humility after he had denied Christ three times. He had been outspoken and bold before, but now he knew the true measure of himself. This is the kind of rock that Christ built his church on. It’s also the kind of rock Christ wants to use today for building his church: men and women with no ego, obedient to God and dismissive of themselves. I’ve known a few great men and women who have had such humility. But only a few. It reminds me of a song from way back in the days of the Charismatic Renewal, it’s based on James 4:10 and goes like this: Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord And He shall lift you up higher and higher And He shall lift you up Blessings everyone. -Ingrid (Image: Claude Vignon - The Repentant Saint Peter - 1643)

Practical tips for personal evangelism

May 5, 2026

Many years ago I listened to some teaching by John Wimber on the subject of personal evangelism. John had many practical suggestions that helped make me a more effective witness for Christ. I thought it might be helpful if I listed some of his tips for doing evangelism here on our blog. To keep things simple, I’ve listed these tips in bullet form. I’ve also incorporated these tips into a new PDF document titled John Wimber on Personal Evangelism which you can download from the Resources section of our website, and I’ll update this document with more of John’s teachings on evangelism as time and energy permits. John Wimber on Personal Evangelism These tips are from some notes I took listening to teaching by John Wimber. Fears that often hinder us: Not pure enough Not educated enough Might provoke anger or rejection But we have a job to do: “You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8) The key is just talk to people There’s no easy way to begin Find common ground by listening Start with God’s love “God loves us” is the content of our message “You don’t have to live under Satan’s power anymore, God’s kingdom is available to you in Jesus!” Times of crisis (sickness, trouble etc.) can be profitable times to talk to people about Jesus But should do so carefully and sensitively A comforting loving word can bring someone to the Lord More to come. —Mitch

Why you should give your church away

May 3, 2026

A sower went out to sow. But first he needed some seeds. So he went to Home Depot and bought a bag of seeds. When he opened the bag, he saw that they were very nice seeds. So he wanted some more. Checking on Google Maps, he found a Garden Center on the outskirts of the city. So he drove there and bought several more bags of seeds. Soon he had a whole wheelbarrow full of seeds. But it wasn’t enough – he wanted more. He asked ChatGTP where he could purchase large volumes of high-quality seeds at wholesale prices. ChatGPT happily recommended some agri-suppliers in his county, and soon his whole barn was full of seeds. He continued building up his store of seeds in this manner until harvest time came. But he had no harvest that year, because he had been hoarding seeds instead of planting them! Hear what I’m sayin’? A good example of how this parable applies to the church is housegroups. Many pastors see housegroups as having a supportive role for their Sunday services. They reason that by getting visitors involved in housegroups (small weekday evening fellowship gatherings in people’s homes) they will feel “connected” and will be more likely to become full members of the congregation. And by centering housegroup activity on discussion of the previous Sunday’s sermon, pastors try to utilize their housegroups to reinforce their preaching and teaching. But they’ve got it backwards! As we explain in our book Simple Kingdom: Home Fellowships , it’s in home fellowships, not in Sunday morning services, where church really happens. Home fellowships are the perfect training ground for believers to learn how to worship, minister, serve, help, love, forgive, move in spiritual gifts, reach out to others, walk in holiness, and more. And they’re also the place where new leadership can arise and be nurtured in ministry areas like teaching, healing, evangelism, the prophetic, pastoral care and helping the poor. In other words, home fellowships are the seeds from which new churches can be planted. And by giving your church’s home fellowships the freedom to be led by the Holy Spirit and then letting them go when the Spirit imparts vision and authority to their leaders, you’re going to end up reaping a big harvest at the close of the age. So if you’re a pastor and you’re using your home fellowships to try and make your church grow, you’re doing it wrong. Yes, your church probably will grow if you do it this way, but the goal isn’t to make your church grow, is it? The goal is to make the church — God’s church — grow. So give your church away so that God’s church can grow. If you do that, you’ll be rewarded (Luke 6:38). Cheers, Mitch