When you watch the movie or read the book “The Cross” you see me sharing Jesus in all types of conditions and with all types of people. In the film it is very interesting and emotional to watch the people’s response. You get to see the real life reaction in many different places on earth. I often have people say “Don’t you ever take a vacation from sharing Jesus and just be normal?” My reply is, “My life is a vacation. I enjoy sharing Jesus. I love people and that is not a job or stressful.” Even if I take the day off from walking with the cross to rest, I still meet people. At a restaurant, at the market, at the hotel, at the airport and etc. Sharing Jesus is as much a part of my life as my feet or eyes are a part of me.
Now, I am not holding myself up as an example or some sort of super witness. I am just saying that just as many start conversations about sports, politicians or the weather. For me, no matter where the conversation begins, I seek to bring it to Jesus. Why chit-chat about the weather for fifteen minutes with a stranger and never say, “Well whatever the weather, this is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice in it!” Someway, somehow in most cases you can inject a witness for Jesus. You can greet the person at the 7-Eleven with a smile and ‘Have a wonderful day, God bless you’. This can change their tough working day and bring a spark of joy and hope. This too can open a conversation that could bring them to Jesus. You could see a neighbor struggling with a heavy load and you could rush out to help them. Give them a great ‘God bless you and let me know if I can ever help you in any way.’ Two things I want to address. First is that you don’t have to ‘earn’ the right to share Jesus with someone. You don’t have to be a long time friend or do something for someone before you share Jesus. It’s nice if you can but it is not required. Just look at Jesus and you see him constantly meeting strangers and them leaving changed in one encounter. Also just read the book of Acts and you will see the followers of Jesus sharing Him with unknown strangers everywhere they went. They would meet, share Jesus, lead them to know Jesus as Savior and then seek to instruct them in the ways of Jesus. Most of the relationships formed after conversion. Second is that I believe we are to share Jesus with people and not preach at them. There is a vast difference. You share about your vacation – where you went and what the weather was like, how good the food was and what place you stayed, etc. You have no problem doing that. You discuss with strangers on an airplane about your job, children, family and friends. You share where you are going and what you’ll be doing when you get there. No problem. People sit at a bar for hours. The problem is not being able to talk, but the problem is …Jesus! Even followers of Jesus often have a hard time talking about the one they love the most. Just like talking about the vacation, or to the stranger on the flight, or about your job or sports, now let sharing about Jesus be part of your conversation. You don’t have to get red in the face, talk breathlessly and quote a dozen scriptures. You can be friendly and smiling and caring & open about Jesus and the life you have in Him. You can offer to pray for them if they have shared troubles, needs or illness. Then pray right there! Most people have never heard anyone pray for them. I did not just walk the world or travel the world. I had and have a purpose. It is the mission and purpose of Jesus that the message of salvation be shared with all the world. I do not want to stress you or put you into a works type of religion. I just encourage you to express the love and passion that is within you now with others in a natural and open way. Pray for laborers to be sent into the harvest, as Jesus asked us to pray. Then say, ‘Lord Jesus, send me into that harvest of souls and use me to be your witness and be a part of the end time harvest. Fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit, and put your words in my mouth.’ Glory!
Whatever the specific calling and direction of your life may be, remember it needs to have the mission of Jesus as a vital part… ‘To seek and to save those who are lost’! God bless you and lead you in your witness this week.
Pilgrim followers of Jesus, Arthur and Denise Blessitt, Luke 18:1
The Heart of God!
The heart of the calling, mission and purpose is Jesus!The calling, mission and purpose of Jesus was and is “to seek and save those who are lost”. (Luke 19:10) The mission of carrying the cross around the world was not a sporting event or an effort of extreme sports, or to be in the Guinness World Records or to make a movie or write a book. It was a walk in obedience to the call of Jesus to share the cross and the message of the cross and Jesus with people in all the world. I did not just walk. I walked with a cross! The cross is about Jesus! Jesus is about love. Love is about God, for God is love. God’s love is about people! The focus of God from Genesis to Revelation is the redemption of fallen humanity. It all points to the message of salvation, forgiveness of sins, and repentance. Jesus did mighty miracles and powerful, loving actions of healing, feeding the hungry and caring for the needs of people, but all his action was to bring new life to those He helped. Remember the man in his bed that was brought to Jesus. Jesus said to him: “But that you may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto your house.” (Matthew 9:6) The heart of God is so clearly shown in “For God so loved the world that He gave…” Jesus was and is the gift of God for our eternal life. Our mission is to share this message. There are many ways this can be done. The only question is, how does Jesus want ‘you’ to share Him with others? There is no question that the call to witness or share Jesus is for every believer. I am an evangelist. My call is to share the ‘good news’ of Jesus with the people I meet and to reach out to the entire world. To look at my life or to see the movie or read the book and come to any other conclusion is to miss what “The Cross” is all about. “The Cross” is all about Jesus and people! Lifting the cross up. Lifting Jesus up. Lifting people up to Jesus and the love of God! Simple. Profound. True. It has been so beautiful to live in the way of the cross. To live and see the beautiful people all over the world is wonderful. I have enjoyed the flowers along the roadsides and the stunning sunsets and awesome beaches. I have thrilled to the rhino, the elephant and the eagle. I have taken the time to enjoy the journey, but there is nothing in this world – and I know, as I’ve been in every nation – that compares to leading one person in prayer as they repent and welcome Jesus into their lives and are born into the Family of God, and their names are written in the Book of Life. Sports thrills are nothing compared to a soul being saved. There is only one thing on earth that you as a follower of Jesus can do that makes heaven rejoice, and that is to lead one person to Jesus! Read…Luke15:7,10 “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Do you have leading a person to Jesus as your primary purpose? I will close this column with that question, as I must also ask it of myself. As you pray and follow Jesus, and I do too, may we have the heart of Jesus and His purpose and mission as our own. Remember Jesus said…
“Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you”. (John 20:21)
I am praying for this column to produce fruit and that many will rise up with the passion of Jesus to step out into the harvest of souls just waiting for the message and invitation to come to Jesus.
Pilgrim followers of Jesus, Arthur and Denise Blessitt Luke 18:1
“The Cross”
is perhaps the most well known symbol in the world. From its origin as an instrument of suffering and death, it has become through the suffering and death of Jesus Christ a symbol of life, love, hope, and salvation.
I am deeply humbled and honored that Gener8Xion Entertainment chose to use the same name in the movie “The Cross” as the International Bible Society/Authentic Publishing did for the book. The title “The Cross” says it all. Before the foundation of the world Jesus was preordained to go to the cross. In heaven the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Lord God Almighty, purposed to bring redemption for fallen humanity at the cross. The Blood of Jesus would be the atonement for our sins. At the cross Jesus died and His Holy Blood was shed for our sins. Jesus on the cross was our sin bearer and Holy Sacrifice. Only through His Blood can sin be washed away. On the third day, Jesus arose, Glory! And when He appeared to His disciples He said, ‘See my Hands and side’! The resurrected Christ still had the marks of the cross in His Nail Pierced Hands. When we see Jesus revealed in the last book of the Bible He appears as ‘a Lamb as though it had been slain’. The host of heaven shouts with a loud voice “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain… Blessings and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb, forever and forever”! Revelation 5th chapter. So from eternity before creation to all eternity to come, The Cross will still be the center point. For, at the cross the virgin-born Son of God who lived a sinless life and showed His power over all the created universe died for our sins that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. The Bible strongly declares this message: “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
For the Scripture says, ‘Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. ‘How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?’ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:9-15)
Walking the world with the cross and carrying it into every nation and major island group is about delivering a message. It is the message of Jesus and the cross and seeking to share it in a way that people will understand and open their lives to Jesus as their Savior and Lord. All the exciting stories and close calls to death, the arrest and battlefields, crossing the jungles and deserts and over mountains, is about getting to the next person and sharing with them the Light of the world who is Jesus! ItÕs not about numbers or winning but about Jesus saving the lost and giving them new life. I repeat part of the scripture above for emphases. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’ My prayer is that we all have beautiful feet!
Pilgrim followers of Jesus, Arthur and Denise Blessitt Luke 18:1
Not ‘if’ but ‘how’!
I have faced many challenges in my life at different times and in many different ways, but always we are forced to focus on either ‘If’ or on ‘How’. If that had not happened, if I had the money, if only I could get a brake, if I did not have a family, if others understood me, if I could get more people praying for me, if I knew for sure the will of God. On and on we could go but the question is, are you living in the world of ‘if’? If so, you face constant insecurity, turmoil and doubt. Some develop a strong or even extrovert attitude to cover our true feelings. The ‘if’ person is under constant pressure and stress
because life has a way of things working out in ways we could question. One’s walk with Jesus should not ever be a question of ‘if’ but ‘how’ do I follow Him. How do I do His Will? How do I come to know and understand His Word and ways? Those of you who have read my book and or seen “The Cross” movie or heard me speak know that I am totally focused on ‘How’! There is a way through that jungle. There is a way into that nation no matter how many times their embassy refuses your visa or even if the border guards refuse you entry. There still is a way in! I know. I’ve openly carried a 12-foot cross in every nation. I walked out of a hospital with a brain aneurysm to carry the cross around the world. I have seen Jesus do the impossible over and again because as He led, I kept pressing forward. I kept reading, searching, contacting and praying and listening to the leading of Jesus as only one thing was in my heart… ‘how’! This was not stressful or obsessive, but was and is a peaceful, restful trust in the sovereign will and power of God in all things. Jesus gave the mission and He has the Power to perform in us His Holy Call for the Glory of God. I have often sat down with pen in hand, prayed and then wrote down one scenario after another about how to do the call of Jesus for a certain thing. I would begin putting down my ideas – all ideas no matter how simple or far out; let my mind be free. I would not with hold any idea. Then I would read the list of ideas. Then I would pray over each. Sometime very fast and at other times it was a matter of days that I would mark off one after the other until I had a list that Jesus was leading me to explore and move forward on. I refused to let anyone quench my spirit or effect my emotions. I was often deeply doing a mission in a nation but still I was working on other ideas to carry out the ultimate call of Jesus. I look at this process as fun and exciting. It is real life with Jesus. Sometimes Jesus speaks clearly and I move at a moment’s notice to do His will. But you get the point. Jesus wants us to follow Him and His will with one thought in mind ‘How’! Just remember Jesus will give you the will and the power to do His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 I pray for you to go forward and focus on the now and how. Rest in Jesus and step out in freedom and power to live the life with Jesus. How do we go into all the world and share Jesus with every nation and person? Seems overwhelming, but my mission and yours is simply to follow Jesus and do what He calls you and me to do. I cannot do your job or live your life or you mine, but we can pray for each other, support each other, love each other and help each other in every way we can. Smile, you are here for a purpose! Jesus is with you. Now ‘Go’ Remember, it’s not ‘if’ but ‘how’! Glory. Love and blessings,
Pilgrim followers of Jesus, Arthur and Denise Blessitt, Luke 18:1
Life is full of ‘Disappointments’
The question is not if one will have disappointments, but how to deal with them. From the time we are a baby we face the fact that mama doesn’t hold us as long as we want, and the baby is disappointed that the diapers are not changed promptly. For most, we face disappointment with our body in one place or the other; with the color of our eyes or skin texture, or our size, etc. As we move into becoming an adult we have grades in school that do not mach our expectation. Relations with other people often do not work out as we think and even in the church disappointments abound. Enough about how we are disappointed; now to the question of: how do we deal with it? In the movie “The Cross” and the book by the same title, I deal with going on ‘one step at a time’. How do we do that? I will give you some of my ‘road’ view, as I have pondered this and other ideas as I carried the cross around the world. There is a vast difference between ‘Disappointment’ and ‘Discouragement’! Disappointment means that what you wanted to happen did not work out as you expected. So you are disappointed. Every time I share Jesus with someone I expect and pray they receive the Person of Jesus as their Savior and Lord. I expect to lead them in prayer. This does not always happen. So I am disappointed because the result was not up to my expectation. When I preach I expect every unsaved person to commit to Jesus but that does not always happen. Over and over many times during a day I am disappointed because I do not always see what I expect and want to happen come to pass. One may have a problem area in their life and you think you have won the victory, and wham, you fail again. However, Discouragement is different. Discouragement means you let disappointment grow and you become discouraged. Discouragement means that you ‘give up’ or ‘stop’ or become bitter or hopeless. What you see now is failure and you lose the passion of Jesus and for life, for others and even for yourself. The smile is put on and does not flow from fulfillment. Peace is history. Now there is no real problem with disappointment because it means you are believing and expecting answers to your prayers and response to your service to Jesus and others. Where the problem lies is when the person we are praying for dies, and you do not get the job you prayed for or the husband you wanted, etc. The disciples of Jesus got disappointed with Jesus not doing things the way they expected, even though He did mighty miracles. Things did not work out the way they wanted and believed. They lost trust and faith in the Garden when Jesus was betrayed and arrested and taken away. They forgot what He had told them would happen, and they ran away and hid. They were now not just disappointed, but discouraged! You see the steps. It can happen to anyone. We must keep our eyes on Jesus and step by step follow Him, even when we do not understand what is going on around us, or to us, or sometime even in us. Our passion is to follow Jesus. Love and obey Him. Go forward in the Power of the Holy Spirit. I have a message I love to preach called “When everything says ‘No’, here comes Jesus”! Don’t fear disappointment, accept it and trust Jesus and leave the result in His Hands. After all, remember it is His Kingdom and not ours. Ask Jesus to set you free and let you see the world and life through His eyes. Here is your homework: for the next week take a few minutes and read each day Philippians the forth chapter. Mark the verses that leap out at you. Have a notepad and pen with you to write notes to yourself. This can change your life and outlook on life. It will fill you with the mindset that overcomes discouragement. I did not write the scripture here. You need to make the effort to get your Bible and then read it daily for a week. I’d love to hear back what happened in you. So don’t fear launching out for fear you will be disappointed again. That was then and this is now. You can step into your call, mission and destiny in the power of Jesus. Jesus is all you need. Glory
Pilgrim followers of Jesus,
Arthur and Denise Blessitt,
Luke 18:1
