October, 2000

FlipDog... Strange name, great free job search site.

Answering the Call

You have been called! How do you suppose I know that? Well, we are all called once we turn life and heart over to the Master. Oh yes, you already know about the Great Commission... (By the way, are you doing anything about that?) and every believer recognized his or her calling to a Godly life of prayer and worship and love... But what about that special kind of calling your pastor has received (I hope!)?

Just as your pastor or any other vocational ministry worker is called of God to their ministry, you are also called to a ministry... You've heard it said that God has a plan for the life of every believer? Of course! The phrase is bandied about without end and with very little impact, it would seem, for few Christians live like they were responding to God's call to ministry.

True, if one is called to the mission field or the pulpit, there is great rejoicing (funny how God usually calls those who would love to do it anyway) and much preparation... Answering that call is definite and easily recognized by all... But what about the call to minister in the field of welding, or raising hogs, or waiting tables?

"No!" I hear you protest, "Those aren't callings, they're just jobs!" And jobs they are, but callings nonetheless. Consider Bazalel and his assistant Oholiab who God called quite specifically to oversee the work on the tabernacle as Israel wandered in the desert 40 years... Oh, and what of Joseph who was called to several vocations in Egypt before he was elevated to second in command over that nation... And don't you think God had a hand in the fact Jesus' step father was a carpenter?

God knows where you are and what you are doing, and none of it is an accident of fate. Even if you wandered to your present position while out of His will, He will use you right there in spite of any waywardness on your part. Yes, dear heart, you were called to minister in your job. Scripture tells us to work for our masters (employers in this age) as if for God Himself.

So, for this time and place, and until He chooses another, we are each called to our vocations and we are each given a ministry within that vocation. Look for ways to reflect the Lord's love in your workplace and seek out opportunities to witness with both your words and your deeds. This ministry you've been called to is an important one!

The Calling of A Cabbie
Submitted by Crystal Owings

Twenty years ago, I drove a cab for a living. It was a cowboy's life, a life for someone who wanted no boss. What I didn't realize was that it was also a ministry. Because I drove the night shift, my cab became a moving confessional. Passengers climbed in, sat behind me in total anonymity, and told me about their lives. I encountered people whose lives amazed me, ennobled me, made me laugh and weep.

But none touched me more than a woman I picked up late one August night. I was responding to a call from a small brick fourplex in a quiet part of town. I assumed I was being sent to pick up some partyers, or someone who had just had a fight with a lover, or a worker heading to an early shift at some factory for the industrial part of town.

When I arrived at 2:30 A.M., the building was dark except for a single light in a ground floor window. Under these circumstances, many drivers would just honk once or twice, wait a minute, then drive away. But I had seen too many impoverished people who depended on taxis as their only means of transportation. Unless a situation smelled of danger, I always went to the door. This passenger might be someone who needs my assistance, I reasoned to myself. So I walked to the door and knocked.

"Just a minute", answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 80s stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie. By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.

"Would you carry my bag out to the car?" she said.

I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb. She kept thanking me for my kindness.

"It's nothing", I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated".

"Oh, you're such a good boy", she said.

When we got in the cab, she gave me and address, then asked, "Could you drive through downtown?"

"It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly.

"Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice".

I looked in the rearview mirror. Her eyes were glistening.

"I don't have any family left," she continued. "The doctor says I don't have very long."

I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. "What route would you like me to take?" I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl. Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, "I'm tired. Let's go now."

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.

I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

"How much do I owe you?" she asked, reaching into her purse.

"Nothing," I said.

"You have to make a living," she answered.

"There are other passengers," I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.

"You gave an old woman a little moment of joy," she said. "Thank you."

I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life.

I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift?

What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?

On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in my life. We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware - beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.

***
No matter what your job, you can minister to the needs of others if you really want to. Proverbs 14:23 tells us, "In all labor there is profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."

Speakers Announced for 2000 Internet Evangelism Conference
E-Net Vision - Digital Strategies and Resources for the Great Commission is Theme

ORLANDO, FL (September 29, 2000) - The Internet Evangelism Coalition has announced that Leonard Sweet, Lee Strobel, and Kay Arthur will be speaking at the 2000 Internet Evangelism Conference in November in Orlando, FL.

Leonard Sweet, Professor of Evangelism at Drew University is a widely known preacher, historian and author and has produced a web-based preaching resource called PreachingPlus.com. Lee Strobel, teaching pastor at Saddleback Valley Community Church in California, is author of "The Case for Christ" and "Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary." Kay Arthur, co-founder of Precept Ministries, is an internationally known Bible teacher, author and host of national radio and television programs.

Also speaking will be Bishop Roderick R. Caesar, Jr., pastor of a mega-church in Queens, NY., and Steve Brown, renowned radio Bible teacher on the program "Key Life." Brown is also an author and professor at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, FL.

Conference participants will also hear from Warren Bare, founder and CEO of Headhunter.net, who will share from his 20 years of management, development and engineering experience in the software and Internet industries. At another session, participants will interact with a panel of Internet experts, including Jeff Fite (ibelieve.com), Spencer Jones (Christianity.com) Robby Richardson (Gospelcom.net) and Steve Wike (Crosswalk.com).

As a major addition to the conference this year, participants are signing up for a free, ha1f- hour consultation with a leading Christian Internet professional who will evaluate and give input on their web sites. To be considered for this consultation call (407) 826-1361 for a Consultation Request Form. Consultation spaces are limited and are being filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Key Internet strategists and practitioners will also conduct workshops on a variety of subjects including: Case Studies of Internet Evangelism; Resourcing Your Web Ministry; Maximizing Web Sites for Evangelism; Models for Cross Cultura1/International Web Evangelism; Lessons from early pioneers in Internet Evangelism; Utilizing the power of XML and Emerging Web Legal Issues and Their Implications for Online Ministry.

A Cyber Cafe will keep participants connected to the web and offer many opportunities for networking with other Christians involved in or interested in Internet Evangelism.

The 2000 Internet Evangelism Conference will be held November 2.4 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at the Orlando International Airport in Orlando, FL. The Conference fee of $195 includes all main sessions, a choice of workshops, conference materials and two meals. Special one-day conference registration, spouse registration and student registration rates are available.

Housing is available at the Hyatt Regency during the conference period for $99 a night. For more information on the 2000 Internet Evangelism Conference, go to http://www.webevangelism.org , email info@webevangelism.org or call 407-854-1361.

This is the third Internet Evangelism Conference. Last year's conference drew nearly 300 people to Chicago to focus on using the Internet for evangelism and equipping Christians to share their faith online.

Integrity
By Staff Writer Janet Davis

Sound moral principles.

Sitting at the computer I came across a wonderful dissertation on "What I Believe".I haven't read it for a looong time, and I was still impressed.

I gave it some thought and decided to share it with others. As I sat thinking about these decisions from this reading, it became clear that since I had not written this, I needed to think about honesty (I rarely think about honesty because I do not think dishonestly). Make sense?

I still want to share this with you, and since I'm being up-front, it is not an act of plagiarism. I hope. So here it goes.

"WHAT I BELIEVE"

There is a God whose all consuming concern is whether or not I love Him.

I have a reason to be alive.

Money is not the answer. Therefore, the abundance, or lack of it will not rule me.

I will never die, I'm born again.

My family loves me, and I love them.

I will live forever, and heaven is but a wink away.

I control my moods, not visa/versa.

I can change the world (my world).

The most important element in this World is another human being.

These beliefs are in my heart.

Now most of these are to be interpreted, you may have your own opinions. All in all, they are not not to out - of - line. However, there is sooo much more, and more to come daily in our walk with Jesus.

So the next time you have heard, read or seen, give credit where credit is due. Have some integrity a rarely spoken word... and I do not who wrote those lines. Forgive me.

In Christ's Love and Joy,
Janet - Handmaiden's

P.S. I really do not remember who wrote " WHAT I BELIEVE"( please forgive me)

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