Without Vision, My People Perish

United Faith ChurchUnited Faith Church provides 3 KEY STEPS to follow in order to walk in GOD’S VISION. Pastors Jerry and Janeth Santiago are the senior pastors of United Faith Church in Barnegat, NJ.

“Where there is no vision, the people perish…” Proverbs 29:18

Revelation. Divine guidance. Prophetic vision. These are all terms used to describe the original Hebrew word for “vision” in the famous Proverb above.

We hear the word vision all of the time. Companies have visions for their path to success, athletes have a vision to reach their goals, and we routinely go to the eye doctor to examine our vision. But what exactly does it mean to have “vision” in God’s Kingdom? United Faith Church is excited about their vision to touch the nations for Jesus Christ, which God placed on the hearts of Pastors Jerry and Janeth Santiago at the start of their ministry.

Night versus Day

When Jesus planned to return to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead, His disciples asked Jesus why He would risk going back there when last time He went, the Jews tried to stone Him.

Look at how Jesus responded.

“Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light”” (John 11:9-10).

Was it the light of the sun that Jesus was really speaking of here? Let’s look at something else Jesus said to His disciples after healing a blind man.

“As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world” (John 9:4-5).

Jesus is explaining that just as we need sunlight to see during the day, we need His light in order to see in God’s Kingdom. He was able to venture down a dangerous path because He had spiritual eyesight to see exactly where to go and not stumble along the way. This is vision. Without it, people perish; they stumble because they cannot see in the night.

To walk in the night is to have no understanding of God, doing whatever seems best, yet having no revelation of God’s will for our lives. We want God to bless what we do without knowing whether it is what He wants for us. We trip and fall as we make decisions in darkness over the years, and we end up paying the price, stumbling with each step along the way. This is because we cannot see.

But God’s desire is for us to see, which is why he sent his Light, his Son Jesus. To walk in the day is to see the way God sees. When we can see Jesus, we know the way to walk, and our plans prosper. We have vision for His will in our lives and the lives of our families. His light guides us on the path that will keep us close to Him and bring His Name glory.

United Faith Church teaches the importance of having vision which is modeled through the lives of Pastor Janeth Santiago and her family. Below are three key steps to follow in order to walk in the vision God has for our lives.

  1. SEEKING

How do we get vision? Having vision means that we can see that our own ways keep us in darkness, but in the light of Jesus we can see His ways that lead to righteousness. Our eyes are opened to this vision through seeking; “…seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).

On our knees, we come into the Light. We cry out, Lord, show me the way! And we come to know the Light. God gives us spiritual eyes to see Him in everything. He helps us to take responsibility for our past, present, and future, and to make godly decisions according to the vision He puts in our hearts. No longer do we make decisions based on our own limited darkened understanding, but we look to God, the One who knows all things, to lead us. “Your word is a lamp unto my feet, a light on my path” (Psalm 119:105).  The beauty of being able to see is that it sets us on a straight path for our lives and for the future generations to follow.

  1. CONNECTING

Next, we must learn to continually connect with God. Many have heard the verse “…I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). If God never leaves us, why the need to seek and connect?

We see the heart of God in His word that says to trust in Him with all of our hearts, to not lean on our own understanding, and to acknowledge Him in all of our ways (Proverbs 3:6). When we do not look to God in all of our daily decisions, we disconnect from Him; even though He is there, we cannot see him just as a blind man cannot see the person standing in front of him. But if we connect to the Light, we can see Him, and we can hear Him. It is in the seeking and connecting that we come to know and walk in the Day and remain as children of the light.

  1. REMAINING

Jesus said, “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness” (John 12:46). God’s desire for us is that we come out of the darkness into the light and to remain in the light.

How do we remain? By daily living in the vision that God has given. Those living in the light cling to the word of God as the guide that directs their every step. The decisions they make for their families are in accordance with the divine vision of Christ Jesus and His plan for each of their lives. They carry in their hearts the dream that they and their children will be ministers and lovers of God for His glory and honor. Although they live in a dark world, they are not of it; by faith they come into the light of Day where they see their God and follow His leading.

This is what David spoke of when he said, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me…” (Psalm 23:4). When we remain in God, He lights our path and leads us in the way we should go in peace. The vision of God takes us beyond what we can do and even imagine and allows us to see God’s plan for us in His Kingdom… “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived – the things God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Pastors Jerry and Janeth Santiago, along with the families of United Faith Church, have big dreams to touch many lives for God. Their vision extends to their children and the many generations to come.

For more info and articles, please visit www.unitedfaithchurch.org. United Faith Church is led by Pastors Jerry and Janeth Santiago.

Mendel Mintz Describes Chabad Community Center

 Mendel Mintz


Mendel Mintz

According to Rabbi Mendel Mintz, everyone wants a place where they feel welcome. For this reason, Rabbi Mintz leads the Chabad Jewish Community Center in Aspen with an openness that encourages Jews of all backgrounds to keep coming back. Recently, A Gathering of Experts blog staff spoke with Mendel Mintz about the center, which is located in Aspen, Colorado.

A Gathering of Experts: We understand that Chabad welcomes all, Jews and non Jews alike. Is it challenging to provide programs for both?

Mendel Mintz: Not at all. At Chabad, we try hard to celebrate the history and heritage of Judaism, rather than focusing on one particular aspect or belief.

A Gathering of Experts: Your programs are rooted in the “Ahavet Yisrael” doctrine. How does this impact your programs?

Mendel Mintz: When translated, “Ahavet Yisrael” means love for a fellow Jew. We strive to welcome everyone and make them feel a part of our community.

A Gathering of Experts: How do you avoid alienating some who may believe differently than other members?

Mendel Mintz: Our goal is to focus on fulfilling our members’ spiritual needs by providing programs and services that celebrate the Jewish tradition.

A Gathering of Experts: But your programs aren’t focused solely on the past…

Mendel Mintz: No, we try to provide a balance of Jewish history and tradition with modern-day Jewish techniques to provide each member with a well-rounded perspective.

A Gathering of Experts: Do I have to be a member to attend one of your classes or participate in one of your programs?

Mendel Mintz: All are invited to attend one or all of our programs without joining.

A Gathering of Experts: Are most of your members Orthodox Jews?

Mendel Mintz: Actually, it’s the opposite. Most if not all of our members are not Orthodox.

A Gathering of Experts: If someone isn’t Orthodox, will the Chabad Community Center try to convert them?

Mendel Mintz: No. Our goal is mainly to educate and celebrate the Jewish faith. We accept everyone who wants to join in learning more about Judaism.

A Gathering of Experts: Do you try to label different Jews and put them into categories?

Mendel Mintz: We believe that we’re all Jews with no reason to put people into groups. Chabad believes that labeling puts walls between different groups.

A Gathering of Experts: According to your website, Chabad’s parent organization is the Chabad World Headquarters, located in New York. Is this where you get your funding?

Mendel Mintz: When it comes to funding, we’re independent, with funding coming from within the Aspen community. That funding stays in Aspen, helping improve and strengthen the Jewish community in the area.

A Gathering of Experts: One last question. Are women well respected at Chabad?

Mendel Mintz: Yes, we work hard to uplift women, believing women are an integral part of the Jewish family.

Rabbi Mendel Mintz lives in Colorado, where he is executive director of Chabad Community Center in Aspen. As Mendel Mintz explains, Chabad Community Center is located on Main Street. For more information, visit them online at jccaspen.com.

 

God’s Luv International Ministries Church: Honoring God in Our Prayers

God's Luv International Ministries Church

God's Luv International Ministries Church

God’s Luv International Ministries Church was founded on a vision of a worldwide ministry. As leader of God’s Luv International Ministries Church, Dr. Pierre Bennett uses anointing of oils and laying of hands to heal and comfort those in his congregation. God’s Luv International Ministries Church meets in Reston and McLean, Virginia, where members are encouraged to help others reach another level in their relationship with God.

Today, God’s Luv International Ministries Church is at the forefront of Dr. Pierre Bennett’s mind as he talks to us about how to pray successfully.

A Gathering of Experts: Sacrifice is a large part of the Bible’s story. As the pastor at God’s Luv International Ministries Church, how do you translate that to today’s world?

Dr. Pierre Bennett: I recently spoke to God’s Luv International Ministries Church about David, who stopped every six paces to pray to God. I use this example to show my God’s Luv International Ministries Church members how important it is, no matter what we’re going through in our lives, to stop and pray to God.

A Gathering of Experts:  I think we all want to pray more, but we sometimes slip and realize we haven’t prayed as often as we should.

Dr. Pierre Bennett: Many of the members at God’s Luv International Ministries Church hear me say all the time that whatever their weakness is, they should pray on it.

A Gathering of Experts: Pray to remember to pray more?

Dr. Pierre Bennett: Why not? None of us are perfect. I encourage those who attend God’s Luv International Ministries Church to pray that their weaknesses become their strengths so that they’ll be better able to worship Him.

A Gathering of Experts:  But you talk about more than prayer when you’re speaking to your God’s Luv International Ministries Church congregation. You’re having actual conversations.

Dr. Pierre Bennett: There’s prayer and then there are conversations. As I tell God’s Luv International Ministries Church, I speak to God while I’m in the car, while brushing my teeth—in general, as I go throughout my day. I believe having an open dialogue with God brings me closer to Him.

A Gathering of Experts:  Does He speak back to you?

Dr. Pierre Bennett: I get His message loud and clear. Often I just want understanding on some lesson He’s trying to teach me. Understanding is especially important if He wants me to share it with God’s Luv International Ministries Church. I need to fully understand so that I can share with others.

A Gathering of Experts:  David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Obed and later Zion in response to God’s direction

Dr. Pierre Bennett: Yes, and in doing so, he lost one of his men. This made them fearful at first, but as I said in my sermon at God’s Luv International Ministries Church, the next time they tried, they succeeded. I believe it was because David was following God.

A Gathering of Experts:  As you tell God’s Luv International Ministries Church, David’s ultimate goal was Jerusalem, which is a representation of the church?

Dr. Pierre Bennett: At God’s Luv International Ministries Church, we believe the ultimate goal is the Kingdom of Heaven. In order to get there, we must follow the path He has chosen for us, by seeking His will through prayer, listening to the answers He gives, and obeying Him.

For more information about God’s Luv International Ministries Church, please call (703) 395-1430.

Apostle Pierre Bennett: Are You an Unlikely Prophet?

Apostle Pierre Bennett

Apostle Pierre Bennett

Apostle Pierre Bennett was a military serviceman, and a salesman before being called to serve God in 1999. It was then that Apostle Pierre Bennett founded God’s Luv International Ministries Church, which recognized him as an Apostle in 2008.

Apostle Pierre Bennett explains the importance of giving God’s prophecies away. If God sends a message through you, He expects you to deliver the message. Apostle Pierre Bennett often has people ask if he remembers things he has said to them. The truth is, Apostle Pierre Bennett may not remember, but he knows the importance of speaking the prophecies he’s been given to deliver.. Otherwise, Apostle Pierre Bennett says, it’s like a hard drive that keeps filling up with information. By speaking these prophecies, Apostle Pierre Bennett believes, he can let them go in order to have his mind free for new information from God.

If you are unsure that the messages you are getting are from God Himself, Apostle Pierre Bennett advises that you ask Him. He will give you the confirmation you request. Apostle Pierre Bennett recalls a confirmation that he received during a service in Mississippi. A man approached Apostle Pierre Bennett after the service and announced he was a prophet. Because the man was dressed sloppily, it didn’t quite fit, but it was a sign of God’s sense of humor. Sometimes, says Apostle Pierre Bennett, your confirmation can come in the oddest of ways.

Additionally, Apostle Pierre Bennett believed it was confirmation of everything God had been wanting to show him. The service was full of healing and people receiving His Word, and for a while Apostle Pierre Bennett had been asking God for a confirmation. These were things God had been sending through Pastor Bennett for a long time.

God is elevating you, no matter what those around you say. Apostle Pierre Bennett acknowledges that sometimes others may insist that God can’t possibly be talking through you because you aren’t jumping around or shouting. But Apostle Pierre Bennett points out that just because you don’t do things exactly the way they do, doesn’t mean you aren’t in the process of moving to the next level in God’s kingdom.

If those around you have been saying they don’t believe you’ve been anointed, disregard those statements. God will show you what you need to see, when you need to see it, Apostle Pierre Bennett states. The key is to hear His Word and pass it on. Become his vessel. Those who fail to understand will never realize you are being elevated to the next level.

To learn more about God’s Luv International Ministries Church, call 703-395-1430.

Pastor Pierre Bennett: Making Christ the Lord of Your Life

Pastor Pierre Bennett

Pastor Pierre Bennett

Pastor Pierre Bennett founded God’s Luv International Ministries Church, which has two weekly services in Virginia. Through his church and his LifeSource Foundation, Pastor Pierre Bennett seeks to fulfill a vision of worldwide ministry of care. LifeSource Foundation is committed to bringing academic enrichment, prevention, and intervention programs to those in need.

Pastor Pierre Bennett, explaining the bounty of God’s love for us, compares Him to the rich uncle in a family. If you go to dinner with that rich uncle, Pastor Pierre Bennett says, the rich uncle will be the one who pays. The rich uncle has been blessed with great riches, so he would be expected to pay. Pastor Pierre Bennett compares the Lord to that rich uncle.

God is King of everything, Pastor Pierre Bennett describes, and as such He will return what you give to Him – but multiplied. When you give something to God   He gives it back to you, perfected. Everything He returns to you will be blessed with His miraculous Spirit, Pastor Pierre Bennett adds.

To further explain this idea of God’s blessing, Pastor Pierre Bennett uses currency as an example. If you give God a dollar, says Pastor Pierre Bennett, He will wring out everything that is impure and return it to you. But first there may be a period where you think that dollar bill won’t be returned, Pastor Pierre Bennett states. When you finally get that dollar bill back, it will be multiplied. So you should think of anything you give God as a seed or deposit. It may not be in the exact time you expect or want, but when you do receive what you have requested, it will be multiplied, assures Pastor Pierre Bennett.

So then, if Christ gives more back to His followers, what must He get from God? The answer, Pastor Pierre Bennett says, is eternal life. Christ was eternal before He came to mankind, before He was human, so the ultimate gift, according to Pastor Pierre Bennett, is eternal life for all of those He loves.

What’s amazing about all of this, Pastor Pierre Bennett points out, is that God has so much love for us. All we have to do is believe. Christ came down to illustrate what we needed to do to get that salvation, showing us by His example, Pastor Pierre Bennett explains. By following Christ’s example, concludes Pastor Bennett, we can also have salvation.