I'M NOT A FISHERMAN!

"And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They immediately left their nets and followed Him." -- Matthew 4:18-20
 
My dad loved fishing, so I hope there is fishing in heaven. If so, I know he's by the River of Life casting to his heart's content. When I was an 8 year old kid, he took me fishing all day long, returning with hardly anything. He loved it, but I vowed this was not my calling. However years later as a young adult, I went fishing and our rowboat was right on top of a school of fish. I couldn't catch them and bait my line again fast enough. Now THAT was fun!
 
On a trip to Florida I walked out on the Fort Myer's pier. There I found a man who had 4 poles going at once. I was amazed, and asked him some questions, thinking surely there are some similarities in fishing for fish and fishing for men.
 
He said one thing I will not soon forget. " You never know what will happen."
Some days all he got was small penfish, a really prickly fish he used for bait. And then once he caught a 5 foot shark right off the pier. He said his lines can be in the water all day and sometimes never get a bite. But other days, he hits the jackpot.
 
Jesus called Peter and Andrew to follow Him. Imagine experienced fishermen leaving their nets and their profession, to follow Jesus! Why would they do that? Little did they know, but they were about to enter the greatest fishing expedition of their entire life!
 
It's true... you never know what a day will bring. But you will never catch fish until you throw your line in the water. When you do, the adventure begins.
 
I know now that fishing isn't just about catching fish. It's also about the adventure of dreaming with other guys of what could happen, and telling a few 'fish stories' while waiting for the next catch.
 
I have found that fishing for men is one of the great highlights of my life. What I used to think was boring and scary, is still scary at times, but is also a wonderful ride. It's like riding the highest roller coaster, and then wanting to relive the 'rush' all over again!
 
Why don't you share your faith... today? After all, you never know what will happen!
Fishing for men,

Africans know how to dance!

Thanks so much for praying for Pastor George Bunnell and I while we led a crusade and pastor's seminar in Nigeria, Africa. We are thankful for the fruit we saw in so many areas. Africans truly know how to celebrate!

Even though our crusade was intentionally in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Ibidan, the people willingly worshipped the Lord through dynamic praise, dance and whole-hearted expressions of thanksgiving! Watch>

When we prayed for the fire of the Holy Spirit to fall on the pastor's seminar, I witnessed a mighty and lengthy outpouring of praise and worship from people who were hungry to receive from the Lord! One of the highlights was when we trained with the ONE-MINUTE WITNESS faith-sharing tool. The pastors who attended the seminar were so excited to learn how to share their faith with this evangelism tool. Then we all went out into the Muslim-dominated streets of Ibidan two-by-two. They returned rejoicing and happy that they had learned a new way to share their own testimony with anyone. Watch>

Many people testified of healings and deliverance. We successfully planted much seed in this neighborhood that had never hosted a Christian crusade of this size. Strangely enough, I appreciate your prayers more now that I am home. Having just returned from our mission to Nigeria, West Africa, I realize again why Jesus OFTEN got alone to pray. Nigeria is filled with many expressions of RELIGION, but fewer know what it is to have a RELATIONSHIP with Christ. Corruption is common and many have lost hope of ever earning more than a couple bucks per day.

In the area we were working was comprised mostly Muslim, animists (tree and rock worshippers), and white robe Christians (those who believe in polygamy and incense), with a smaller group of born-again Christians who are truly in love with Jesus. If Jesus 'felt' all our feelings, I understand how He thought it necessary to OFTEN withdraw to be alone to pray.

If you and I are going to be "in the world but not of it," we NEED to get alone with our God OFTEN and let Him pour His culture of love, acceptance and security into our lives. Without His refreshing, we will surely burn out. But in His presence, we will learn how to dance in every circumstance!

Photo Gallery>

Intentional for souls,

Tom Elie
Evangelist/President
Oasis World Ministries
www.oasisworldministries.org

Dead Men Walking

I know many Christians are tired of being tired...trying to measure up to God's perfection...trying to please him a little more...and wondering if he is ever pleased.

GOOD NEWS! God does not desire that we try hard in our own strength to be holy in order to please Him. INSTEAD, God invites us to die to ourselves--to our agendas, our carnal affections, to our fleshly ambitions, and our sinful nature--so that Christ can live in us. It's when we stop trying to live for Him, that He can live through us.

And herein lies the problem: we can't deliver ourselves from our flesh and sinful nature. WHILE Only the blood of Jesus can cleanse us from sin, ONLY the cross sets us free from our sinful habits when we die to them.

Paul said, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son or God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20). Jesus died so that we can live. We can live when we die to ourselves and let Him live through us.

This 'death thing' is not a one-time decision. Jesus says, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me" (Luke 9:23). When I die to myself, Christ's life can enter me. Then I become a slave of righteousness (Romans 6) instead of a slave of sin.

So let's stop trying to be super-spiritual and striving to be perfect. We simply cannot. But let's embrace the cross five times a day if necessary. Then the overcoming life can be ours, and we can boldly share our faith without fear and love others with the true heart of God.

Are you ready to live? Then let's lose our lives and embrace the cross to make room for Christ to live through us!

Intentional for souls,

Tom Elie
Evangelist/President
Oasis World Ministries

977 prayers for salvation in one night!

I recently returned from my 41st trip to the great harvest field of India! THANKS FOR YOUR PRAYERS! Without prayer, we have no favor. What comes from heaven is first loosed on earth by prayer.

This trip was marked with opportunities to sow into the next generation of evangelists and reap a harvest of heaven-bound souls.

Highlights
ONE-MINUTE WITNESS TRAINING AT COLLEGES

I trained the One-Minute Witness faith-sharing tool at four colleges. Around 1,000 students are now equipped to share their personal testimony. After training, we took them out to apply their new tool, and they came back with fresh excitement.

THOUSANDS CONFESS JESUS AS LORD
In two open-air 5-day festivals, thousands came to the altar to indicate their desire to follow Jesus as their one true God. These festivals were held in areas that have never hosted a gospel festival before. During the final night alone, we saw 977 people expressing their desire to follow Jesus. Photo gallery>

MANY MIRACLES OF PHYSICAL HEALING
By God's grace, we verified the opening of blind eyes and deaf ears, heard many testimonies of vanishing body pain, and two miracles I had never witnessed before.

The first was that of a boy who was born with a paralyzed fist. After prayer he was able to opened his hand for the first time. Watch>

The other miracle was that of a 12-year-old girl who was born mute and spoke for the first time. Watch>

WELLS AND CHURCHES DEDICATED
Twenty Hindu neighborhoods now have fresh water provided by our Christian donors. At each fresh-water well dedication, the gospel message was delivered and dozens have prayed for the gift of salvation.

In addition, three villages now have their first Christian church building to declare the love of Jesus. Photo gallery>

NEXT, we leave on our first trip to the country of Nigeria, West Africa, and a return trip to Liberia. Please continue to pray for us March 22- April 7. We are asking God for 20,000+ people to pray to receive Jesus. Prayer requests>

AGAIN, THANKS also for your financial support. We still have a need of $20,000 for this large Nigeria crusade and pastor's seminar. They are expecting 2,000 pastors and leaders for the seminar alone. Donate>

Intentional for souls,

Tom Elie
Evangelist/President
Oasis World Ministries

P.S. Also, let's continue to pray for the people of Japan, that their hearts will be turned to Jesus in this great crisis.

The 1,000-percent Advantage

"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them" (Matthew 18:20).

In God's kingdom, a culture of individuality is over. God said, "It is not good for man to live alone. I will make a helper suitable for him" (Genesis 2:18). So He gave man a woman. Jesus sent the disciples two by two to proclaim His gospel (Mark 6:7). Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto. And Batman had Robin.

There's an old African proverb that says... "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."

God has called us to be a part of the body. No part can survive on its own. The church is His body; not the church building, but the people. When I made a decision to share my faith everyday, a fellow pastor said, "I will do it with you." I told a couple more pastors, and they said, "We will do it with you." And so, I was suddenly empowered and accountable.

So, who are you partnering with? To whom do you joyfully submit? Is it just you and Jesus? If so, your effectiveness will be short and sweet.

When the authorities threatened the disciples to stop talking about Jesus, their response was, "WE cannot help speaking about what WE have seen and heard" (Acts 4:20). When we move as a team, we encourage each other, we have more credibility when two witnesses share their story instead of one, and we protect each other's back through praying through the spiritual barriers that surely come.

Yes, there can be disappointments and risks when you trust others. But, there is power when we walk together. The Bible says that one shall put one thousand to flight, and two shall put ten thousand to flight (Deuteronomy 32:30). That's a 1,000% advantage!

Here's another illustration: An owner of Clydesdale horses performed a test. Alone, the big, muscle-bound horse could pull 1,200 pounds. So the owner thought two horses could pull 2,400 pounds. But to his surprise, he found that two Clydesdales pulling together could pull 5,000 pounds!

That's some good horse sense if you ask me!

Intentional for souls,
Tom Elie
Evangelist/President
Oasis World Ministries
www.oasisworldministries.org