The Greatest Gift!
The Greatest Gift was not wrapped in shiny paper lying under a Christmas tree...given to someone, but rather was wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger...given to everyone! Jesus Christ is the Greatest Gift ever given to humanity! This Gift was given to the world in celebration of the Birth...day of Jesus before Christ…mas was ever even heralded. Jesus Christ, the Savior is born! The Ultimate Gift was not held in the hands of the three “kings of Orient,” but rather in the hands of Mary, who held the One “King of kings!”
As the Gift of the Holy Ghost (Christ) is poured out, we can celebrate the spiritual Birth...days of His children. Jesus is the Greatest Gift! He is the “Ultimate Gift.” (Acts 2:38; Romans 6:23; John 4:10, 14) He is the best! He is the “Unchanging Gift.” (Hebrews 13:8; James 1:16-17) He never depreciates! He is the “Unsolicited Gift.” (Ephesians 2:8, 4:7; Romans 5:18) He freely died for all! He is the “Unlimited Gift.” (I John 2:2; Revelation 22:17) He is inexhaustible! He is the “Unspeakable Gift.” (II Corinthians 9:15) He leaves you speechless!
Jesus Christ does not have to be the Unclaimed Gift, simply because people do not know what they can possess, nor understand the value of their inheritance. (II Corinthians 6:2; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 1:18) Claim what is yours, and also help others to claim what is theirs. Know Jesus and...Make Him Known! Will you send others the “Good News” about what is rightfully theirs?
The United States Postal Service statistics show that on average the Postal Service historically processes and delivers approximately 16 billion cards, letters, and packages between Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Eve. Wow…what astounding figures! What if the Church became more passionate, with an even greater desire to send…the news of the Greatest Gift? To send…the gospel; to send a tract or outreach card; to send an invitation to church; to send a prayer; to send whatever God desires.
We should always endeavor to send “The Whole Gospel to the Whole World by the Whole Church.” We should unite to answer, “the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (Isaiah 6:8) We should unite to pray that “the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:38) We should unite to advocate Lord, “O send out thy light and thy truth…” (Psalm 43:3).
Indeed, Jesus is the answer for the world today! Tell the world, “I Give You Jesus,” and let’s present Him more than ever, for He is the Greatest Gift of all!
Flo Shaw
WNOP Director
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Stir Up the Gift
“Neglect not the gift that is in thee...” (I Timothy 4:14).
“Therefore, I remind you that you stir up the gift of God...” (II Timothy 1:6).
One morning I awoke to the thought, “remember chocolate fudge.” All during that day as I prepared for the family’s arrival during a special occasion, I wondered curiously about this thought. Fudge is not a family tradition for me, whereas chocolate cake and brownies are. What could the Lord be speaking to me about in the making of fudge?
With a little probing, I learned that the dark creamy confection is a fairly recent recipe. Barry Popik, an early American researcher, noted in the Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York yearbooks from the late 1800’s that many of them mentioned fudge. It probably was the new craze of that day. One yearbook listed a poem about fudge that intrigued me:
What needs more stirring than oat-mush [oatmeal]
And more still when we’re in a rush,
But what’s even sweeter than a “crush,”
It’s “Fudge.”
Part of the first line of the poem caught my attention, “. . . more stirring than oat-mush . . .” This reminded me of two scriptures written by the apostle Paul to Timothy, who just received the infilling of the Holy Ghost. He needed to be reminded to “stir up the gift of God” and not to “neglect the gift” that was within him. Paul encouraged Timothy to understand the importance to continue even without his mentor by his side. In other words, he must walk steadfastly in the Lord on his own.
When making fudge, I found that it must be stirred constantly. Otherwise, the sugar will crystallize and clump together. Most importantly, the smoothness of the chocolate will be compromised if it is not kept at a certain temperature to prevent the sugar crystals from reforming. One crystal reforming can ruin the whole batch of fudge.
I believe the Lord was speaking to me that as in the making of fudge, we too must stir up the gift of God within us. Much like gritty fudge, our spiritual gifts can clump and crystallize into a dormant state if not continually tended to. The Body of Christ has a work to do, which requires a constant stirring of the Holy Ghost to get it done. The Kingdom of God depends on it. Let’s pray together.
Pray:
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Forgive me, Lord, for neglecting the gift within me.
- Lord, help me to stir up the gift, (and gifts of the Spirit), within me so that I can be empowered and used in greater works.
- Help me, Lord, to exercise myself in godliness, which is profitable unto all things, knowing that godliness with contentment is great gain. Help me to avoid those who have the appearance of godliness but deny its power.
- Help me, Lord, to keep that which has been committed to my trust, avoiding oppositions of science, or false doctrines, or anything that is knowledge against You, oh God.
- Heavenly Father, help me not to love the world, the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes and the pride of possessions, but to abide in Your will forever.
- Help me, oh Lord, to walk in faith, to draw near to You, and to seek You like never before.
Patty Daszewski
WNOP Travel Coordinator
Bethel UPC
Long Island, New York
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It is important to consecrate ourselves through prayer and fasting. All individuals and churches are encouraged to participate in the annual 30 Days of Prayer on January 2-31, 2022.
This and other prayer info is found also at wnop.org. Let’s join together anticipating great revival, harvest, and success, knowing that “Above Him There’s No Other, Jesus is the Way!”
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World Needs:
- Pray for the Lord to continue to protect the harvest field by supporting Texas with the next steps.
- Pray for Haiti and family members who lost loved ones as 60 people were killed and dozens injured after gasoline exploded from a tanker truck that stopped and started to leak gas due to mechanical issues.
- Pray for the Lord to keep the body of Christ focused on His return, as threats come from many sides, through natural disasters such as 30 Tornadoes that hit Kentucky and surrounding states and Super Typhoon Rai (known locally as Odette) that slammed the Philippines causing torrential rain and the threat of widespread flooding to approximately 20 million people.
- Pray about software vulnerability known as “Log4j” that large organizations, including some of the world’s biggest tech firms, use to configure their applications.
- Pray for immigration challenges throughout the world as Britain receives 88K visa applications from Hong Kong residents,.
- Pray for fires throughout the world, such as the recent one that occurred in Hong Kong’s World Trade Center in which 13 people were hospitalized, 3 were treated for physical injuries, and 10 suffered smoke inhalation.
- Continue to pray for the Bride of Christ and the harvest field during this Covid season as the Omicron variant is spreading quickly in several countries. It has killed at least one individual in the UK, and placed 10 additional individuals in the hospital. Cornell University in NY reported 903 student cases of Covid-19 cases. Some colleges are moving classes and tests back online to prepare for cases worsening with the quick spreading of the Omicron and Delta variants, as well as the flu virus. South Korea has tightened restrictions by banning social gatherings of five or more people.
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POA HOPE Prayer
Fall ’21 "90 Day Prayer Journey"
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It’s that wonderful time of year!
Rosh Hashanah, on the historical Jewish calendar, brought the beginning of the year 5782. Celebrating those special days with God’s chosen people only added to the feelings of expectancy and urgency many are feeling.
Fall; beautiful Fall. The colors are simply glorious. The weather is marvelous. Everyone wants to be outdoors, by a fire, cooking, working, and just enjoying cool, brisk breezes.
It’s time again to unite with POA’s HOPE Prayer Family around the world to pray. What a blessing to come together for a cause so close to the heart of Jesus; His covenant children who have lost their way and those who love them and refuse to give up hope.
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October 1, we will commit to pray our 14th season of “90 Days of Prayer” for our beloved prodigals and those who love them. Some of us have been together 7 years, praying faithfully every Spring and Fall. What journeys we’ve had of love, grace and mercy!
We will again pull our thoughts and prayers from the scripture-based book by Dr. James Banks, Prayers For Prodigals. We may deviate some, however we like staying with the scriptures Dr. Banks has compiled for each day.
We invite you to join our HOPE Family for these 90 days of binding together in hope and faith. If it is your first time, we welcome you to a family who cares deeply about all prodigals.
“And there is hope in thine end, saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border” (Jeremiah 31:17 KJV).
Believing for the harvest,
Don and Dy Anne Long
POA HOPE Prayer
Email: hopejer3117@aol.com
FB: HOPE2Hope15
IG: HOPE2Hope15
Photo Credit: Timothy D. Heard
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Dr. David K. Bernard
UPCI General Superintendent
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Access Challenged Nations
Join the World Network of Prayer and Global Missions in praying for the nations that currently do not have an apostolic work. We will focus on one nation each week.
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2022 WNOP Events
- 30 Days of Prayer (January 2-31)
- SoCal District Summons (January 6-8). Location: TBA
- New York Metro District Conference (January 27-29). Location: TBA
- South Carolina District Summons - Regional (February 24-26). Doubletree Hotel, Columbia, SC
- *Arkansas District Summons (March 11-12). First Pentecostals of Benton, Benton, AR
- UPCI Fivefold Ministry Discovery Conference (March 30-April 2). South Bay Pentecostal, Chula Vista, CA
- WNOP Leadership Retreat (April 6-8). UPCI World Headquarters, Weldon Spring, MO
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Washington District Summons (April 21-23). Location: TBA
- National Day of Prayer (May 5)
- National Apostolic Day of Prayer (Date TBA). Apostolic Fellowship Summit
- WNOP International Summons (June 2-4). New Life St. Louis, Bridgeton, MO
- World Day of Prayer/Pentecost Sunday (June 5).
- New England Territory Summons (NETS) - Regional (August 18-20). Christ Temple, Tiverton, RI
- UPCI Day of Prayer (September 28)
- International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (November 6)
- *South Texas District Summons (Dates TBD) Houston, Texas
- *Ontario District Blitz (November 4-13). Location: Various Sections in Ontario, Canada.
- YM + WNOP Summons (Rescheduled Dates TBD). Location: TBA
- WNOP “Operation Prayer Evangelism: “Switzerland” (Rescheduled Dates TBD)
- WNOP “Operation Prayer Evangelism: “Operation Turkey” (Rescheduled Dates TBD)
- WNOP “Operation Prayer Evangelism: “Operation Jamaica” (Rescheduled Dates TBD)
*Pending Board approval. Note: Events and schedule subject to the restrictions and impact of the ongoing pandemic.
Also, more 2022 event dates to be added to the WNOP Calendar later as approved by the Board throughout the year.
(For more info on these specific listings, please contact WNOP at 636-229-7986)
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Consider supporting WNOP with a tax-deductible donation. Give the gift that keeps on giving:
PRAYER!
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WNOP Personal Prayer List
To join WNOP in praying for the personal needs submitted by email, phone and website, please click the button below.
You may submit requests by email at pray@wnop.org.
"If you received an answer to prayer or have a victory report, post it on WNOP's Facebook page. We would like to hear from you."
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World Network of Prayer | United Pentecostal Church International
36 Research Park Court, Weldon Spring, Missouri 63304
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