IamJ Talk

The experience of Crystal Bassette

Discernment is necessary

Let's do good on the Sabbath day

Prayer

Amen

Should we share the Gospel on social media with fear?

Be blessed as you listen

An Upper Experience is very significant in Christian Life.

Jesus has called His people to share the gospel message to the ends of the earth, until the end of the world at His soon second coming. We have nothing to worry about as we engage in this work. All authority is His! His Spirit is with us to guide us and empower us! What a wonderful thing it is to have Jesus, the Greatest Missionary of the Universe, with us … to the end, and beyond!
As you have gone through these 100 Days of Prayer, as you and your family have experienced personal revival, let this fire for God not be quenched, but engage in pro-active, selfless, intentional, loving, missionary work. This will not only give you continual revival, but it will result in souls won for Jesus, and a fulfilled life!
Is it your desire to take this next step with and for Jesus? To commit to a lifetime of mission service for Him, wherever you are, and wherever He calls? Trusting in His grace to be sufficient for all challenges ahead? Will you choose today to be more than just a churchgoer, but to become a world-goer; somebody who goes into the world to reach souls with Jesus?

We have the unique, prophetic calling to proclaim the Three Angels Messages to the entire world in preparation of the Second Coming of Jesus. These messages can be summarized like this: 1) God is Your Creator, You are loved and desired by Him. Accept His gift of grace and the judgment will be in your favor. 2) This world with all its anti-God systems is corrupted, unreliable, and fallen. Put your trust in God alone. 3) Satan, the originator of all death, misery, selfishness, and pain, sin, and all who embrace His falsehoods will be destroyed soon in order for justice and love to be restored to the universe. Only those who put their trust in the loving Savior Jesus Christ will be eternally saved and transformed into a new person who reflects the selfless love of God.
Is it your desire to do all that is within your ability to reach this lost world with the love of God, and the message of repentance, salvation, and judgment? Will you shine as Christ’s representative in a dark world? Will you stand, live, speak, care, bless, and love, embracing your prophetic identity as a Seventh-day Adventist?
And if you are not a Seventh-day Adventist, is it your desire to join God’s end-time movement, be baptized and engage in Jesus’ mission?

The majority of the world lives in cities. While we are to ask God to show us when to move to the countryside, we are not to neglect the work in the cities. Billions are trapped without hope in the addictions, noise, distractions, and the lifestyle of the cities.
Pray for God to give you a burden for ministry to the cities. Maybe He is calling you to start a “center of influence”, a ministry-minded business, in order to reach lost souls in the cities of the world? Or maybe He is calling you and your church to engage in a wholistic outreach through various ministries to the people of your city?
Why not ask God to show you how to best minister to the people of your city?

Are you in school? Do you have classmates, fellow students who are in pursuit of a degree and good education? Do you realize that what you have to offer – the gospel – is of much more value than a degree or any education this world can offer? Do your classmates know that you are a Christian, a Seventh-day Adventist? Or maybe you graduated a long time ago. Do you still have connections or friendships with former classmates?
God is calling you, whether you are a student in a Christian or a public setting, to be a light to your fellow classmates. Whether you interact with them on the phone, online (due to the pandemic) or in person, shine the light of Jesus!
If you are a parent, you are called to help your child in showing them how to love like Jesus, and how to share the gospel.
Will you choose today to become a missionary to the people on your school campus, an ambassador for Jesus to your former/current/future classmates?

Nous devons mettre Dieu à la première place pour résussir à nos entreprises.

Every time you go to work you are entering your mission field. God knew that you would be there before you were born, and if you let Him, He will work through you to lead your co-workers to the foot of the cross.
Will you ask Jesus who you should witness to at your workplace? Will you start praying for all your co-workers by name and plead with God for opportunities to share Christ?

Jesus considers you and me His friends. What a wonderful thought! He was willing to lay down His life for our salvation, and He did it even though our acceptance of His gift was not a guarantee.
Do you have friends who don’t know Jesus yet? Or maybe you have been afraid of sharing Christ for fear of losing your friendship?
If Jesus was willing to give His life, yes everything that He is, for the salvation of His friends, shouldn’t we do all we can to encourage our friends on the path to a faithful walk with Jesus?
Ask God in prayer how to best engage in evangelism towards your friends. Ask Him to give you opportunities to share about your faith, Jesus’ love, and how they can experience the saving grace of God as well!

Jesus is aware of your sphere of influence. He knows every person you come in contact with. Our neighbors are as much our mission field as people in distant lands. We have the privilege to interact with them and be a light to them. But this must go beyond a friendly smile and the occasional small-talk. How will they hear the truth if nobody tells and shows them?
Will you pray for opportunities to build friendships with your neighbors for the purpose of witnessing to them about Jesus’ love for them? If you don’t know your neighbors, are you willing to step out of your comfort zone and introduce yourself? Are you willing to commit to the important ministry of neighborhood-evangelism?

We all have immediate or extended family members who have not yet fallen in love with Christ and decided to live faithfully for Him, or they have walked away from God. Maybe some are atheists or have other reasons for their decision. Or maybe they have never had a chance to fully hear, understand and see the gospel in words and actions.
You have a responsibility to do all that is within your power to gently, kindly, and with much wisdom and love reach out to those family members, showing them that you care, and at the right time pointing them to the truth and love of Jesus.
Will you prayerfully do this important work of intercession and ministry to your non-believing/non-Adventist/backslidden family members? Will you commit to be more intentional in your outreach to them?

One of the major reasons we don’t have to ever live in fear, consumed with worry and anxiety is because we know how the story ends. We know that sickness will not have the last word: Christ will. We know the coronavirus, or any other virus, natural disaster, calamity or nuclear war will not destroy all life on planet Earth. We have the promise of Jesus return. We see famines. We see earthquakes. We see distress of nations. We see the rise of a possible nuclear war. We see the potential of nuclear disaster. We see climate change. We see pestilences taking the lives of thousands.

What a wonderful truth! God, the Source of all Life, is willing to give to all who believe the power to live a life of love, faithfulness, and righteousness on this side of heaven. But not only that, He also gladly bestows eternal life to His children, for them to live with Him forever in perfect health, bliss, joy and harmony! Praise Him!
Have you taken hold of the life-giving, life-transforming, and life-enriching good-news-reality that is available to you in Jesus? Are you looking forward to resurrection day, when all who believe will receive an immortal body to enjoy eternal life with our most precious, and loving God?

God is omnipotent. Nothing is too hard, complex, or difficult for Him – the Creator of all reality. He chooses to use His power to help, heal, and restore. Because His words are power and life, all His commandments, directions, and instructions come to us with the promise to be fully realized in our lives on the condition of faith. Faith unleashes the promised power for faithful living.
Will you choose today to believe in God’s power having been made available to you by faith? Will you trust in Jesus, the Word made flesh, to supply you with the ability to do His will? Will you work with Jesus to live a life of healing, helping, and restoring?

Jesus is Wisdom. He knows at all times which is the wisest course of action, the wisest counsel, the wisest way forward. Life presents us with many challenges, whether related to your vocation, your family, your ministry, we are always in need of divine wisdom. Praise God, He is more than willing to give wisdom to all who ask!
Do you desire to exchange the foolishness of your own thoughts for the wisdom which comes from God? Are you willing to accept God’s advice even when it goes against the “wisdom” of the world and your own ideas? Will you open your heart to Jesus’ wise counsels that lead to a life of righteousness and love?

God is love. When you open up to this reality and begin to see all He does through this lens of perfect love, your life will be transformed and become a reflection and a channel of God’s love. Every promise of God is a promise born from love. God, through His love, desires to make you a person of love!
Have you let God’s love do its work of melting all selfishness in your heart? Will you let Jesus, through His Word, redefine what true love feels, looks and acts like? Will you agree to the process of becoming a person of love?

Have you ever felt the ‘joy of the Lord’? The joy of being with God, of communing with Him through prayer and His Word? When you catch a glimpse of Jesus in His pure beauty, all the “fun” which the world offers fades into insignificance. Jesus, with His matchless charms will fill your heart with a joy that is literally out of this world!
Do you desire to experience heavenly joy? The joy of salvation, the joy of faithfulness, the joy of harmony and collaboration with God?
Why not ask God today to give you a taste of His joy by spending more time with Him in prayer and meditation of His Word?

Because of God’s mercy, grace, and loving-kindness, we have been given hope. Hope for a better tomorrow, hope for forgiveness and victory over sin, and the hope of eternal life. Satan and this world offer us countless reasons to give up on life, but in Jesus, “all the promises of God find their Yes in Him” (2 Corinthians 1:20).
Will you choose to take hold of the promises of hope which have been given to you in God’s word and guaranteed to you by the blood of Jesus?
Will you ask Him to help you keep your eyes on the hope of His Second Coming and everlasting life with Him?

How can you extend genuine acts of friendliness to those around you? In what areas do you find it difficult to be friendly to others and faithful to God? What are some specific ways that you would like to grow in your faithfulness? Daniel is a good example of how one man’s faithfulness to God influenced an entire kingdom. How might your friendliness help others see God’s true character and how might your faithfulness to God open doors to show His faithfulness to those around you?

God is highly interested in our overall well-being. He desires to not only be consulted when we experience health problems, but He is willing to help us learn how to prevent many of today’s common health issues and strengthen our immune system. This is why He has given us simple principles that go a long way. These principles are: Healthy nutrition, regular exercise, clean water, sunlight, temperance, enough fresh air, proper rest, and trust in God.
You might already be familiar with these principles, but are you practicing them? Why not take hold of God’s health principles, and with His Spirit’s help, learn to practice all of them?

A majority of the world’s population now lives in cities and urban settlements. Surrounded by man-made, artificial structures, breathing polluted air, and bombarded with constant noise, it is hard to have quiet, reflective time with God and to enjoy His wondrous works of nature. However, spending time in nature refreshes the body and mind!
How much of your time is spent in artificial surroundings or looking at digital content? How often do you take the time to appreciate God’s created nature? Why not make it a point from now on to schedule in regular time in nature to commune with God and learn from it spiritual lessons?

Sin has and is disrupting our lives on all levels. Sin brings imbalance into our lives and leads human beings to go into extremes. In the area of diet and lifestyle this results in various health problems that have negative effects not only on us, but also on others.
Only in the daily connection with the Holy Spirit can we find the strength and ability to become temperate in all things.
Will you choose today to ask God to enable you to be temperate in your diet, your use of time, your media consumption and your overall lifestyle? Will you take hold of His grace and trust in His ability to give you victory as you rely only on Him?

A healthy mind depends to a great degree on what your thoughts continually dwell on, your diet, exercise, and healthy relationships.
There are scientifically proven links between what we eat and how our diet affects our mental capacities. A plant-based diet, more fruits and leafy vegetables, can, amongst other things, positively affect our brain health. Also, what we choose to consume with our eyes and ears, as well as what we continually think and talk about, greatly impacts our mental state.
Do you choose to think about heavenly things, upon themes of righteousness and holiness? Do you engage the brain in activity focused on God’s Word and will? How is your diet looking? Is there room for improvement in order to have a healthier mind, ready to engage in spiritual activities? When was the last time you had a deep, meaningful conversation with somebody? Why not ask God to guide you in the process of gaining better mental health starting today?

God has the power to heal every remedy with one word. He has promised that all who believe in Him will be healed. Whether this happens in this life, or ultimately at the resurrection, is up to His discretion and perfect wisdom. We are encouraged to pray for the sick with faith in the Omnipotent Healer. Often we don’t consult His ability to heal until we have exhausted every earthly option first; and while it is important to do all we can to prevent illness and to treat it, we should always go to God first and seek His guidance as we deal with disease.
Do you believe in God’s power to heal? Do you trust that He knows best when to heal, and when not to heal? Are you willing to surrender your life into His hands in times of health so that you will remain faithful in times of sickness? Will you accept His healing when it comes in the form of a lifestyle change?

So often we ask God to heal our physical illnesses, not recognizing that our most desperate need is spiritual healing first. Yes, physical maladies can at times feel more urgent and seem more painful than unforgiven sins in our lives, but make no mistake, nothing is more important than for our sins to be removed from us. “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world [including your physical health] and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36).
What is easier for you, to ask God for physical healing, or for a complete cleansing of your sins and power to overcome, especially your favorite sins? Are you willing to bear physical illnesses as long as you remain spiritually well?
Why not ask God right now to show you your need for spiritual healing today?

“And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (Matthew 6:27). Your worrying does not solve the problem, it does not ameliorate the situation. Quite the contrary. Rather than contributing something valuable to the circumstance, it clouds your judgment, diminishing your discernment, and renders you less capable of handling the stressor – whatever the stressor may be.

You are worried about your finances. You are worried about your education. You are worried about your children. You are worried about your marriage. You are worried about your health. You are worried about the state of the world and the long-term effects of this COVID-19 pandemic. You are worried about the future and about where to go from here. You are worried about worrying too much. It never stops!

It is an exciting thing to participate in God’s work of drawing people to Jesus. You, with your talents, abilities and influence can be an agent of grace in this world! That’s fantastic! When your life is surrendered to God, and you are filled with the Spirit, He will empower you to do your part in the wonderful privilege of soul-winning! He will sanctify your skills and give you His spiritual gifts to accomplish whatever task He sets before you.
Will you today devote your life to the work of winning souls with Jesus? Will you trust that the Holy Spirit will empower you to do even seemingly impossible tasks? Will you ask Jesus to baptize you with the Spirit as you engage in reaching out to the world around you?

The Father is very much willing to give you the Holy Spirit if you ask Him. God never forces Himself upon you; that is why you need to ask. The original Greek in Luke 11 indicates, that this asking is an ongoing, lifelong activity of seeking more of Him, of opening up your heart to God like a flower opens to the sun. Daily and continually we need to be immersed and filled with the Presence of God through His Spirit. God’s work of sanctification and character-preparation for eternity is a process. Every day He gives us new convictions, challenges and directions through His Word, and we need to daily invite His Spirit into our hearts for grace and ability to obey and to do His good will, loving others as He loves us.
You might have asked for the Holy Spirit before, but understanding that you need His baptism on a daily basis, will you ask for more of His presence in your life? Will you invite the Holy Spirit into every compartment of your heart without holding anything back?

The Spirit leads us to Jesus. And as we abide in Jesus through a daily connection with the Holy Spirit, He will develop in us a character that reflects each day a little more the selfless, self-sacrificial, loving character of Christ. It is a transformational process of a lifetime. Just like a mango does not appear an hour after the seed has been planted but takes its time to grow into a tree that eventually bears fruit, so also the work of sanctification is a process that takes time. But rest assured that through surrender and faithfulness every aspect of the fruit of the Spirit will become evident in your life!
Have you let the Holy Spirit develop in you His fruit? Are there some aspects of the fruit of the Spirit which you have been resisting Him to work on? Is it your desire to reflect Jesus more and more until all that people see is Jesus’ character of love in you?

Part of the Holy Spirit’s work is to convict of sin, righteousness, and judgment. These three elements of His work of conviction are represented in the Sanctuary and its services. In the courtyard is where the sacrifice for sin took place (pointing to Jesus on the Cross); in the Holy Place the three elements of experiencing the imparted righteousness of Christ were revealed in the Table of Showbread (Bible study), the Altar of Incense (Prayer), and the Candlestick (Spirit-filled witnessing). All of which were exemplified in the life of Christ as a model for us today; and in the Most Holy Place we are reminded of the importance and reality of the judgment as the High Priest only entered it on the Day of Atonement (Jesus engaging in the investigative judgment on your behalf).
In other words: The Holy Spirit’s work is to lead you into a salvific experience through faith in everything that Jesus has done and is doing for you.
Can you see the important and beautiful work of the Holy Spirit? Will you joyfully embrace His work of conviction and let Him not only lead you to Jesus, but make you like Him in character in preparation for the Judgment?

Jesus is the Truth. He is the Personification of Truth. As the Creator He defined and established all reality in perfect harmony with His character of selfless love. Satan introduced falsehood and lies into the world, trying to establish a new reality of selfishness, which is really just a grand illusion leading to death. In order to escape the illusions of Satan we have been given the Word of God. The Holy Spirit is the One Who can open our eyes to all truths of the Bible as they are in Jesus. He is the One Who can lead us out of the illusions and into the light of Christ, Who is the Truth, the Word made flesh.
Will you let the Holy Spirit glorify Jesus in your life by leading you into the truth through His Word? Will you not only let Him reveal truth to you, but also let Him reform your heart into harmony with God’s reality of selfless love?

Have you ever fully appreciated the incredible gift of the Holy Spirit? He is part of the Heavenly Trio, the Godhead, and He was sent to you as a gift from Jesus. He speaks, leads, convicts, helps, comforts, transforms and empowers you on your transformational journey of becoming more like our loving Jesus.
Are you comfortable in inviting the Holy Spirit into your life? Have you experienced Him “making effectual what has been wrought out by the world’s Redeemer”?
Why not accept the gift of the Holy Spirit from Jesus and invite Him into your heart, giving Him access to every aspect of your life?

How have you reacted to the worldwide pandemic? How has this affected or not affected your faith in Jesus? Are you willing to trust in Him for the next unexpected storm in your life? Do you believe that Jesus can truly be your Everlasting Rock?

The law of God is the law of love. Jesus revealed what keeping the law truly looks like. You can keep the law only by completely relying on the Holy Spirit for help. As you believe that He is going to help you to live a life of selfless love and as you by faith do actions of love, His divine power will enable you and work in you to will and do of His good pleasure.
If you are struggling with faithfulness to God’s law, will you ask Jesus today to forgive you, and fill you with His Holy Spirit? Will you ask Him to help you not just to keep the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law, which is selfless, sacrificial love to God and all people?

Did you read the quote above? Do you realize that angels are waiting to work through you to reach lost people? Isn’t this amazing?
You are invited to not only be filled with the Holy Spirit for your personal sanctification, but to actively participate in shining the truth, love, and righteousness of Jesus to a world whose time is running out.
Think about your family, your friends, your neighbors, your co-workers. Ask God to show you who needs the light of Jesus in their life? Who should you pray for and contact this week?

The work of sharing Christ is every believer’s responsibility. Using your personal influence to point to Jesus, to share about what He has done for you, and how He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, this is every Christian’s life calling.
Do you have non-believing friends or co-workers in your life? Or have you locked yourself into an “Adventist bubble”? Is there at least one non-Christian person in your life who is getting a taste of Jesus by spending time with you? Ask Jesus today to make you His delicious salt of the earth!

When persecution comes, when your reputation is being slandered, when your life could be in danger, then Jesus’ love and truth will shine the brightest. How you react, what you say, what you do when faced with these pressures, will greatly determine the impact your faithfulness can have on those who seek to ruin your life.
Why not ask Jesus to help you to be faithful and loving today and everyday so that you are able to show that same love even under persecution?
Will you pray to Him even now and ask Him to make you a true Christian who will stand for Jesus though the heaven’s fall?

When selfless-love, righteousness, holiness, and truth is being revealed by faithful Christians, Satan will arouse resistance and hatred amongst those who choose to ignore the Holy Spirit’s voice. We can have the assurance that in all persecution we might face, Jesus will be with us and will be glorifying Himself through our challenging experience.
Have you experienced persecution because of your faithfulness to Jesus? Why, or why not?
Will you choose today to cast off any desire to please the world, and prayerfully focus on revealing God’s glory, even if that might result in persecution?

Salvation in Jesus gives us perfect peace. But Jesus is not calling us to only experience peace with God through a surrender of your life to Him. No, He also calls you to become an agent of peace – a peacemaker. In this time of crisis, will you choose to be such an agent of peace? Will you do all you can to shine the peace of God – His presence of love – into the lives of those around you who live in anxiety and fear?
If you have been the cause of strife and disputes in your family or church, will you seek forgiveness and spread God’s peace?

Where does God dwell (see Isaiah 57:15) and what are the results of godly sorrow (see 2 Corinthians 7:9-11)? What did David ask for in his prayer of repentance (see Psalm 51:1-19)? Contrast that with how Saul responded when reprimanded for his sins (1 Samuel 15:1-30). Which biblical character do you most identify with when you are shown your sins—the one who seeks to justify himself and to maintain honor with the people, or the one who openly acknowledges his sin with a broken heart of genuine repentance?

When we faithfully walk with God, He continually opens our eyes to more and more of an understanding of His character of love, His will, and His beauty. In the realization of His perfect holiness and purity our impurities come to light and we are invited to receive the cleansing only He can give. On this side of heaven, we see with the eye of faith, but one day soon, we shall see Him face to face! That will be a glorious day.
Until then, why not ask Him to cleanse our hearts from all impurity and filth? Why not actively search for an ever-clearer vision and understanding of our God and His will?

Take a moment and think about God’s mercy upon your life. He only looks out for your best, despite your unfaithfulness. He is not requiring you to prove your worth to Him in order to receive His gift of salvation. He treats you with love.
When you experience and internalize God’s mercy, the Holy Spirit will enable you to become an agent of mercy; treating those around you with the same kind of love and mercy. Especially those who have wronged you.
Will you choose today, with the help of Jesus, to extend God’s mercy to people in your life? Forgiving them before they ask for it, loving them before being given a reason to? Desiring their best no matter if they are worth it or not?

Do you hunger and thirst for Christ’s righteousness?
His life of perfect selfless love and His substitutional death provides you with a twofold gift of justifying grace: 1.) His imputed righteousness, which is the promise that you are covered by His perfect life through faith in that promise. 2.) His imparted righteousness, which is the promise that He will transform you from a being of selfishness, into a being that reflects the selfless love of Jesus, through living faith in that promise.
This twofold gift will fulfill you; it will truly satisfy you; it will save you! Why not accept it today and start living a happy and Jesus-filled life in the awareness of this amazing reality of God’s redemptive love?

There is no happier place in life than knowing that you are in harmony with God in all you do. This harmony exists when Jesus is sought after, and the exaltation of self is abandoned, recognizing that the sinful “heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick.” (Jeremiah 17:9). Humility, meekness, is the key to letting the Holy Spirit develop in you a truly beautiful, Christ-like character.
Will you ask Jesus to take away your prideful desires, your self-centered ambitions, and your love of supremacy? Will you ask Him to replace them by enabling you to practice gentleness, meekness, and humility, starting today?